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Translated Texts for Historians

300-800 AD is the time of late antiquity and the early middle ages: the
transformation of the classical world, the beginnings of Europe and of Islam,
and the evolution of Byzantium. TTH makes available sources translated
from Greek, Latin, Syriac, Coptic, Arabic, Georgian, Gothic and Armenian.
Each volume provides an expert scholarly translation, with an introduction
setting texts and authors in context, and with notes on content, interpretation
and debates.

Editorial Committee

Sebastian Brock, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford

Averil Cameron, Keble College, Oxford

Marios Costambeys, University of Liverpool

Mary Cunningham, University of Nottingham

Carlotta Dionisotti, King’s College, London

Peter Heather, King’s College, London

Robert Hoyland, University of St Andrews

William E. Klingshirn, The Catholic University of America

Michael Lapidge, Clare College, Cambridge

John Matthews, Yale University

Neil McLynn, Corpus Christi College, Oxford

Richard Price, Heythrop College, University of London

Claudia Rapp, University of California, Los Angeles

Raymond Van Dam, University of Michigan

Michael Whitby, University of Warwick

Ian Wood, University of Leeds

General Editors

Gillian Clark, University of Bristol
Mark Humphries, Swansea University
Mary Whitby, University of Oxford

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A full list of published titles in the Translated Texts for Historians
series is available on request. The most recently published are
shown below.

Lactantius: Divine Institutes

Translated with introduction and notes by ANTHONY BOWEN and PETER GARNSEY

Volume 40: 488pp., 2003, ISBN 0-85323-988-6

Selected Letters of Libanius from the Age of Constantius and Julian

Translated with introduction and notes by SCOT BRADBURY
Volume 41: 308pp., 2004, ISBN 0-85323-509-0

Cassiodorus: Institutions of Divine and Secular Learning and On the Soul

Translated and notes by JAMES W. HALPORN; Introduction by MARK VESSEY

Volume 42: 316 pp., 2004, ISBN 0-85323-998-3

Ambrose of Milan: Political Letters and Speeches

Translated with an introduction and notes by J. H. W. G. LIEBESCHUETZ and CAROLE HILL

Volume 43: 432pp., 2005, ISBN 0-85323-829-4

The Chronicle of Ireland

Translated with an introduction and notes by T. M. CHARLES-EDWARDS

Volume 44: 2 vols., 349pp. + 186pp., 2006, ISBN 0-85323-959-2

The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon

Translated with an introduction and notes by RICHARD PRICE and MICHAEL GADDIS

Volume 45: 3 vols., 365pp. + 312pp. + 312pp., 2005, ISBN 0-85323-039-0

Bede: On Ezra and Nehemiah

Translated with an introduction and notes by SCOTT DEGREGORIO
Volume 47: 304pp, 2006, ISBN 978-1-84631-001-0

Bede: On Genesis

Translated with introduction and notes by CALVIN B. KENDALL
Volume 48: 371pp., 2008, ISBN 978-1-84631-088-1

Nemesius: On the Nature of Man

Translated with introduction and notes by R. W. SHARPLES and P. J. VAN DER EIJK

Volume 49: 283pp., 2008, ISBN 978-1-84631-132-1

For full details of Translated Texts for Historians, including prices and
ordering information, please write to the following:

All countries, except the USA and Canada: Liverpool University Press,
4 Cambridge Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZU, UK (Tel +44-[0] 151-794 2233,
Fax +44-[0] 151-794 2235, Email J.M. Smith@liv.ac.uk, http://www.liverpool-
unipress.co.uk). USA and Canada: University of Chicago Press, 1427 E.
60th Street, Chicago, IL, 60637, US (Tel 773-702-7700, Fax 773-702-9756,
www.press.uchicago.edu)

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Translated Texts for Historians
Volume 50

Sources for the History of
the School of Nisibis

Translated with an introduction and notes by
ADAM H. BECKER

Liverpool

University

Press

TfH

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First published 2008
Liverpool University Press
4 Cambridge Street
Liverpool, L69 7ZU

The right of Adam H. Becker to be identified as the author
of this work has been asserted by them in accordance
with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording,
or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A British Library CIP Record is available.

ISBN 978-1-84631-161-1 limp

Set in Times by
Koinonia, Manchester
Printed in the European Union by
Bell and Bain Ltd, Glasgow

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgements vii

Abbreviations ix

Introduction 1

The School of Nisibis 1

Identifying Barhadbeshabba 11

On the Manuscripts, Translation, Notes and Terms 16

The Transliteration of the Syriac Alphabet in this Volume 18

Texts

Simeon of Bet Arsham, ‘Letter’on the ‘Nestorianization’ of Persia 21

Introduction 21

Translation and Notes 25

Barhadbeshabba, Ecclesiastical History 40

Introduction 40

Translation and Notes 47

Chapter Thirty One: ‘The Life of Narsai’ 47

Chapter Thirty Two: ‘The Life of Abraham of Bet Rabbarv 73

Barhadbeshabba, The Cause of the Foundation of the Schools 86

Introduction 86

Translation and Notes 94

Mingana Fragment of the Cause 161

Translation and Notes 161

Portion of the Memra on the Holy Fathers by Rabban Surin 163

Translation and Notes 163

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CONTENTS

Appendix I: On the Manuscript Tradition of the Cause of the

Foundation of the Schools 165

Appendix II: The Tree of Porphyry in the Cause of the Foundation

of the Schools 172

Appendix III: The Literary Dependence of the Cause of the

Foundation of the Schools on the Ecclesiastical History 181

Brief Glossary of Selected Terms 192

Maps 194

Bibliography 196

Index of Biblical References 203

Index of Proper Names 206

Subject Index 211

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This volume offers annotated translations of several of the most important
sources for the study of the history of the School of Nisibis, the most promi¬
nent centre of learning in the Church of the East (the ‘Nestorian’ church
of the Sasanian Empire) in the sixth century and an institution that played
a key role in the creation of Christian intellectual culture in Mesopotamia
in Late Antiquity and the early Islamic period. I hope that it will help to
encourage other scholars to continue in the study of the School of Nisibis
and East-Syrian intellectual culture in general (I use the term ‘East-Syrian’
throughout this volume for those Syriac-speaking Christians commonly
known as ‘Nestorians’). A number of works remain unexamined, such as
several examples of the East-Syrian ‘cause’ genre, an aetiological genre
typical of East-Syrian scholastic culture, while the role of Syriac Christians
in the intellectual history of Mesopotamia, as well as the important compar¬
ative evidence Syriac Christianity offers for the study of the other contem¬
poraneous religious communities, has still not been fully appreciated.

This project derives from translation work I began while writing my
dissertation in the Religion Department of Princeton University and at the
Oriental Institute, Oxford University. The dissertation, which was an intel¬
lectual and institutional history of the School of Nisibis and the broader
East-Syrian scholastic culture, has since been heavily revised and published
with University of Pennsylvania’s Divinations series as Fear of God and
the Beginning of Wisdom: The School of Nisibis and the Development of
Christian Scholastic Culture in Late Antique Mesopotamia (2006). Because
of the similar nature of the material it was inevitable that there would be a
number of overlaps between the former volume and the present one. 1 hope
these redundancies are not too tedious for those who notice them. Some
material from chapter 7 of the Fear of God has been placed verbatim in
the notes to the more philosophical portion of the Cause of the Foundation
of the Schools. I would like to thank Sebastian P. Brock for, aside from
encouraging my studies over the past several years, first suggesting that I
submit these texts to be published in Translated Texts for Historians and for

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

viii

his numerous editorial comments and suggestions. Mary Whitby, as General
Editor for the series, provided numerous useful suggestions and criticisms. I
would like to thank Michael Peachin for several helpful references and Ilaria
Ramelli for sharing with me her annotated Italian translation of the Cause
of the Foundation of the Schools when it was still in manuscript form. A
number of people have helped me with obscure references and bibliograph¬
ical queries on the Hugoye Syriac Studies electronic list. I appreciate their
help. I re-read a large chunk of the Cause of the Foundation of the Schools
with my Syriac havruta buddies, Jeffrey Rubenstein and P. V. ‘Meylekh’
Viswanath. I thank them for their feedback on this text as well as their
companionship (along with Mike Pregill) in reading Syriac texts. I thank
Leyla B. Aker for listening to me drone on about obscure things during
much of the work on this volume. Special thanks to Bridget M. Purcell for
her encouragement during its completion. The brevity of this work is inverse
to the immensity of love I feel for my two sisters, Danielle Speckhart and
Rachel Petev, to whom this small volume is dedicated.

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ABBREVIATIONS

AB Analecta Bollandiana

CAG Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca

CS Cause of the Foundation of the Schools

CSCO Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium

JA Journal Asiatique

JECS Journal of Early Christian Studies

JTS Journal of Theological Studies

LA Life of Abraham of Bet Rabban

LM Le Museon

LN Life of Narsai

NPNF Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson,
1994)

OC Oriens Christianus

OCA Orientalia Christiana Analecta

OCP Orientalia Christiana Periodica

OLA Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta

OLP Orientalia Lovaniensia Periodica

OS L’Orient Syrien

PdO Parole de VOrient

PG Patrologia Graeca

PO Patrologia Orientalis

SC Sources Chretiennes

SL Letter of Simeon of Bet Arsham

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INTRODUCTION

The Christianization of the ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern world
led to radical innovations both in the content and the locus of learning in
Late Antiquity. 1 The Christian study circle and eventually the monastery
created a new literary culture, which would be maintained and transmitted
for centuries to come in both eastern and western monasteries. However,
traditional Greco-Roman institutions of learning persisted deep into the
Middle Ages and this new Christian culture of learning continued to be
influenced by the ancient classroom until the end of antiquity. For example,
Neoplatonism, the final floruit of ancient philosophical learning, especially
in the later schools of Athens and Alexandria, left a deep imprint upon the
Christian learning of the Middle Ages. 2 In varying degrees the diverse Chris¬
tian cultures of Late Antiquity brought with them into the Middle Ages
a combination of late antique monastic spirituality, patristic exegesis, and
Greek philosophical and rhetorical learning.

THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

One such innovative combination of the late antique intellectual heritage is
attested in the East-Syrian ‘schools’, a series of institutions which began to
spread through much of Sasanian Mesopotamia in the sixth century. These
institutions could range from gatherings in local churches for the elementary
study of scripture to informal study circles which met in specific locations

1 A recent study of one example of this new kind of learning is Richard A. Layton’s Didymus
the Blind and His Circle in Late-Antique Alexandria: Virtue and Narrative in Biblical Schol¬
arship (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2004). For a general discussion of
classical learning, late antique developments, and the Syriac context, see Becker, Fear of God,
6-12. For a more recent discussion, see Paolo Bettiolo, ‘Scuole e ambienti intellettuali nelle
chiese di Siria’, in Storia dellafilosofa neW Islam medievale, Vol. I, ed. Cristina D’Ancona
(Torino: Giulio Einaudi, 2006), 48-100.

2 For the most recent cultural analysis of the later Neoplatonic schools, see Edward Watts,
City and School in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria (Berkeley: University of California
Press, 2006).

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2 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

within monasteries to independent institutions with a multi-tiered hierarchy
of offices, where students engaged in a detailed study of biblical exegesis
and acquired an acquaintance with Aristotelian logic. 3 The foremost and
most influential of the East-Syrian ‘schools’ was the School of Nisibis,
which is also the most well-known. 4

The School of Nisibis was founded after the so-called ‘School of the
Persians’ in Edessa (Syr. Urhay, or, [§anli]Urfa in modern Turkey) was
closed in 489 by the bishop of the city, Cyrus, under orders from the Emperor
Zeno. 5 At least part of the community from Edessa travelled approximately
two hundred kilometres eastward to re-found this institution of learning in
Nisibis, an important border city in the Sasanian Empire. 6 Evidence suggests
that some form of collective gathering for the sake of learning may have
existed in Nisibis prior to 489 and that some of the members of this group
may have even joined ranks with the immigrants from Edessa. However,
the events of 489 and afterward were a watershed in the history of the insti¬
tutionalization of learning in upper Mesopotamia. In the late fifth century,
under the leadership of Narsai, the last head of the School of the Persians
before its closure, and with the aid of Barsauma, the controversial bishop
of the city, the community in Nisibis created for itself formal rules, similar
to those of a monastery, and began the process that within a few decades
would lead to the School of Nisibis becoming the primary centre of learning
within the Church of the East. 7 By the turn of the seventh century prospec-

3 For a typology and discussion of the different East-Syrian schools, see Becker, Fear of
God , 155-68.

4 Nisibis is modern Nusaybin in south-eastern Turkey, across the border from al-Qamishli
in Syria.

5 For a reassessment of the sources and an attempt to fit them into a new framework, see
Becker, Fear of God, 41-76. The discussion of the School of the Persians below summarizes
the arguments therein. In the following pages I will refer to the School of the Persians and the
School of Nisibis as ‘School’ for short and not ‘school’. Although the sources refer to them by
the Greek schole and especially the Syriac eskole, which obviously comes from the Greek, I
try to avoid referring to them, especially the former, as ‘schools’ since it can lead to an anach¬
ronistic understanding of them as institutions similar to our own. On Edessa in general, see J.
B. Segal, Edessa, ‘The Blessed City ’ (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1970; repr. Piscataway, NJ:
Gorgias, 2005). For an earlier period, see Steven K. Ross, Roman Edessa: Politics and Culture
on the Eastern Fringes of the Roman Empire, 114-242 CE (New York: Routledge, 2001).

6 On the Christian history of Nisibis in general, see Fiey, Nisibe. The most important works
for this period are Gero’s Barsauma and Voobus’s History. For geography, see Dillemann,
Haute Mesopotamie Orientale.

1 There are numerous articles on and translations of Narsai’s works, but a full synthetic
study of his work and life is still lacking, despite his importance in the history of the Church

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INTRODUCTION

tive students flocked to Nisibis from across the Sasanian world and the
reputation of the School would be an inspiration as far West as Italy where
Cassiodorus imagined creating a similar centre of learning at Vivarium. 8 A
disproportionate number of the significant figures in the Church of the East
of the sixth and seventh centuries studied at the School.

The School of Nisibis served as a model for other East-Syrian schools
as well, and the sources reveal a proliferation of this type of institution
of Christian learning throughout Mesopotamia by the late sixth and early
seventh century. Furthermore, the significance of the School of Nisibis and
the scholastic movement in which it played a major role remains to be fully
integrated into the historiography of the institutionalization of learning
among Jews in late antique Mesopotamia and the rise of the Babylonian
Jewish academies (yeshivot ), as well as into the study of the reception of
Greek philosophical and medical literature into Arabic in the early ‘Abbasid
period. 9 Although an awareness of the importance of the School of Nisibis
for both of these respective fields has existed for some time, the sources
have not been sufficiently examined and integrated into a concrete scholarly
discussion of the relevance of East-Syrian scholastic culture for the history
of learning in Sasanian and early Islamic Mesopotamia.

The sources for the School of Nisibis are diverse. The three that
provide the majority of our chronological and narrative information are the

of the East. In general, see Baumstark, Geschichte, 109-13. On his importance to the School
of Nisibis, see Voobus, History, 57-121. On Barsauma of Nisibis, see Gero, Barsauma, the
primary study of this important ecclesiastical figure, and Peter Bruns, ‘Barauma von Nisibis
und die Aufhebung der Klerikerenthaltsamkeit im Gefolge der Synode von Beth-Lapat (484)’,
Annuarium Historiae Conciliorum. Supplementum 37 (2005): 1-42.

8 On one member of the school who travelled from Qatar to study there, see Becker, Fear
of God, 1-4. A close connection is made between the School of Nisibis and Cassiodorus in
Robert Macina, ‘Cassiodore et l’ecole de Nisibe. Contribution a 1*etude de la culture chretienne
orientale a l’aube du Moyen Age’, LM 95 (1982): 131-66; however, Macina’s specific claims
are refuted in Gianfranco Fiaccadori, ‘Cassiodorus and the School of Nisibis’, Dumbarton Oaks
Papers 39 (1985): 135-37. On travel for the purposes of study, see Ed ward Watts, ‘Student Travel
to Intellectual Centers: What was the Attraction?’, in Travel, Communication and Geography in
Late Antiquity, ed. Linda Ellis and Frank L. Kidner (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2004), 13-23.

9 For example, see Richard Kalmin’s Jewish Babylonia between Persia and Roman Pales¬
tine: Decoding the Literary Record (New York: Oxford University Press, 2006), 3-8; Ruben-
stein, The Culture of the Babylonian Talmud, 35-38; Adam H. Becker, ‘The Comparative Study
of “Scholasticism” in Late Antique Mesopotamia: Rabbis and East Syrians’, Association of
Jewish Studies Review 33 (2009); and Cristina D’ Ancona, ‘Greek into Arabic: Neoplatonism
in Translation’, in The Cambridge Companion to Arabic Philosophy, ed. Peter Adamson and
Richard C. Taylor (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005), 18-20. On the utility of
the term ‘scholastic’ for this material, see Becker, Fear of God, 12-17.

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4 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Ecclesiastical History of Barhadbeshabba of Bet ‘Arbaye; the Cause of the
Foundation of the Schools, often attributed to the same Barhadbeshabba; and
the canons of the School. From these three texts we can establish the basic
narrative, however schematic, of the School’s foundation and history through
the sixth century. The first two of these are translated in this volume, while
the third, the canons, which provide an important perspective on the day-to-
day life of the School, were translated into English by Arthur Voobus. 10 A
reprint of these canons is pending and thus 1 have decided not to retranslate
them here. 11 There are other texts extant that were composed at the School.
For example, Flenana of Adiabene, the head of the School at the turn of the
seventh century, has left us two examples of the aetiological ‘cause’ genre
apparently typical of the more advanced East-Syrian ‘schools’. However, his
On Golden Friday (the first Friday after Pentecost) and On the Rogations
(i.e. on the different types of prayer) tell us little about the School’s history,
despite the light they shed on its intellectual life. 12

Mention should also be made of other sources which may eventually help
to contribute to the history of the East-Syrian schools and to the history of the
Church of the East in general. Although Arthur Voobus occasionally used the
later Arabic sources in his reconstruction of the history of the School, more
work could be done, especially after source critical analysis, on a number
of these texts. For example, there are parallels to the events in the ‘Life of
Narsai’ (i.e. Chapter 31 of Barhadbeshabba’s Ecclesiastical History), trans¬
lated in this volume, in Marl ibn Sulayman’s late Arabic Kitdh al-Mijdal
and Saliba ibn Yuhanna’s borrowing of ‘Amr ibn Matta’s use of the Kitdb
al-Mijdal} 3 These two texts as well as Ibn at-Tayyib’s Fiqh an-nasrdniyya

10 Statutes of the School of Nisibis. Becker, Fear of God, 81-87 offers a summary of the
contents of the canons. See also I. Guidi, ‘Gli statuti della scuola di Nisibi’, Giornale della
Societa Asiatica Italiana (Rome) 4 (1890): 169-95; Chabot, ‘L’ecole de Nisibe, son histoire,
ses statuts’; E. Nestle, ‘Die Statuten der Schule von Nisibis aus den Jahren 496-590’, Zeitschrift
fur Kirchengeschichte 18 (1898): 221-29; N. V. Pigulevskaja, Les villes de Vetat iranien aux
epoques Parthe et Sassanide. Contribution a Vhistoire sociale de la Basse Antiquite (Ecole
Pratiques des Hautes Etudes, Vie section, ‘Documents et Recherches’ VI; Paris: Mouton,
1963), 244-51 (see note 24 above); Voobus, History, 90-99, 147—48, and 269-75.

11 Gorgias Press has planned a reprint, but as of publication of this volume it was still
unclear to whom the rights of the volume belong.

12 Henana, On Golden Friday and On Rogations in Scher, ed., Traites, 53-82.

13 E. Gismondi, ed., Maris ibn Salmonis, De Patriarchis Ecclesiae Orientalis Commentaria
(2 volumes; Rome: C. de Luigi, 1899). On these texts, see G. Graf, Geschichte der christlichen
arabischen Literatur (Studi e Testi 133; Vatican: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1947), II:
200-02 and 216-18 respectively.

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INTRODUCTION

and especially the Chronicle ofSiirt, which is employed occasionally in this
volume, may offer information not found in the earlier Syriac sources. 14

Furthermore, numerous other texts mention the School of Nisibis in
passing. However, these sources often offer only further references to the
School and no detailed evidence. For example, references from the late sixth
and seventh centuries to saints and church leaders spending their formative
years there are commonplace and point to the School’s prominence within
the Church of the East. Unfortunately the sources take for granted what their
audiences know about the School and therefore do not provide information
useful for the reconstruction, for example, of the School’s curriculum or its
leadership.

The main question regarding the origin of the School of Nisibis is its
historical relation to the School of Edessa, or the School of the Persians in
Edessa, as it is more commonly referred to by the earlier sources. As stated
above, the School of the Persians was closed in 489 CE under the auspices of
Cyrus, Bishop of Edessa (471-98), by order of the emperor Zeno, at which
point its members migrated into the Persian Empire, some of them, most
notably Narsai, going on to found the School of Nisibis. 15

The School of the Persians seems to have been one of several intellectual
circles in fifth-century Edessa. 16 Although many of the details are open to
dispute, it is clear that it played a significant role as the predecessor to the
School of Nisibis. 17 For example, it is possible that a number of the school
offices later institutionalized in Nisibis developed first in Edessa and that the
core of the exegetical tradition as well as some of the curriculum from the
latter institution originated in the former.

The standard view of the School of the Persians in modern scholarship

14 W. Hoenerbach and O. Spies, eds., Ibn at-Taiyib, Fiqh an-nasramya, ‘Das Recht der
Christenheit’ (CSCO 167-68; Louvain: Secretariat du CSCO, 1957), 11:168.12-169.4. For a
discussion of the sources of the Chronicle ofSiirt , see L. Sako, ‘Les sources de la Chronique
de Seert’, PdO 14 (1987): 155-66.

15 This date has been disputed in the secondary literature. Voobus takes Narsai’s exodus
from Edessa for Nisibis to be in 471 (Voobus, History, 33-41). I have argued against this
elsewhere, Becker, Fear of God, 74-75.

16 The Acts of the so-called Robber Council of Ephesus of 449 briefly and tantalizingly
mention schools of Armenians, Syrians, and Persians in Edessa; Akten der Ephesinischen
Synode vom Jahre 449, ed. J. Flemming. Abhandlungen der Akademie der Wissenschaften
zu Gottingen, Philologisch-historische Klasse, New Series 15.1 (Berlin: Weidmannsche
Buchhandlung, 1917), 24:22-24. In English, see Doran, Stewards of the Poor, 148, despite the
idiosyncratic translation.

17 Drijvers,‘The School of Edessa’.

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6 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

has suffered from an uncritical reading of the sources and an anachronistic
understanding of what type of institution the term ‘school’ may have referred
to in antiquity. 18 Modern scholarship has attributed greater significance to the
School than it perhaps deserves, arguing, for example, that commentaries on
Aristotle’s logical works were composed and studied there 19 and mislead¬
ingly extending its history back to the time of Bardaisan of Edessa (d. 222)
by using the title ‘School of Edessa’ more broadly to refer to the intellectual
culture that existed in the city of Edessa. 20 The origins of the School of the
Persians are unclear, lying somewhere in the late fourth century and perhaps
related to the immigration of Christians from the East after Jovian’s conces¬
sion of several provinces to the Sasanians in 363, following the debacle
of the emperor Julian’s invasion of Sasanian Mesopotamia. Furthermore,
a tradition developed from early on that Ephrem the Syrian, the master of
Syriac poetry (d. 373), taught in and even founded the School, but this is a
later retrojection. 21

Its appellation (‘of the Persians’) and the background of those persons
immediately associated with it in the sources suggest an originally
ethnically-based intellectual circle, which in time, perhaps due to the influx
of Christians from the East and the changing theological standards in the
West, became the centre of a more conservative Antiochene theology. Chris¬
tianity originally spread to Mesopotamia in part from Antioch and therefore
the Antiochene theological emphasis on the humanity of Christ as well as a
hesitant stance towards allegorical exegesis - a practice commonly associ¬
ated with Alexandria - were shared by the Church of the East. This shared
theological heritage between the Church of Antioch and the Church of the
East would explain the popularity at the School of the works of the so-called
Nestorian fathers, such as Diodore of Tarsus and Theodore of Mopsuestia,
which were translated in part by those associated with the School. 22 Moreover,
it seems that the School only became controversial within Edessa as it
developed a pedagogical hierarchy and began to resemble a more formally
organized institution of learning.

18 The standard volume on the School commits this same error (Voobus, History). See
comments at Becker, Fear of God, 41^42.

19 E.g., on Probus, see Voobus, History, 104-05.

20 E.g., E. R. Hayes, L’ecole d’Edesse (1930); more recently, Drijvers, ‘The School of
Edessa’.

21 Cause 381.8.

22 The West-Syrian Jacob of Sarug describes the study of such texts occurring at the School
in the mid to later fifth century. Letter 14, 58.21-59.8.

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INTRODUCTION

As I have discussed in detail elsewhere, all but one of the sources for the
School derive from after its closure and thus reflect the ongoing controversy
between the West Syrians, for whom the School was a source of heresy,
and the East Syrians, who understood it as the intellectual predecessor of
the School of Nisibis. The question remains unresolved as to how much
continuity there was between the School of the Persians in Edessa and that
of Nisibis. The two richest sources for the former, The Cause of the Founda¬
tion of the Schools and the Ecclesiastical History, both of which are trans¬
lated in this volume, were composed at the School of Nisibis and describe
the School of the Persians in the fifth century. However, inconsistencies
between these two texts suggest that their knowledge of this predecessor
institution is hazy.

In any case, in the late fifth century the School of Nisibis was founded
by Narsai, the prior head of the School of the Persians in Edessa and the
first of the School of Nisibis, and Barsauma, the bishop of the city. The
details on this and subsequent events in the early history of the School are
not always clear, especially since the two main accounts, the Ecclesiastical
History and the Cause, disagree on occasion. Apparently the first set of
canons established for the School did not work, and a new set of canons,
which are extant, were established in 496. 23 Further canons are extant from
590 from the time of the leadership of Henana of Adiabene. These were
reconfirmed in 602, perhaps due to the crisis during Henana’s tenure of
office that contributed to the decline of the School. Between Narsai (d. c.
503) and Henana (d. c. 612) there were several heads, or ‘exegetes’ (Syr.
mphashshqdne) as they were called, of the School, but none left his mark
more deeply upon the institution than Abraham of Bet Rabban, who may
have led the School for up to sixty years. It is thus no wonder that the author
of the Ecclesiastical History followed his chapter on the life of Narsai with a
chapter on the life of Abraham, the final chapter in the work as a whole.

The basic chronology of the School’s leadership can be reconstructed
only for the sixth century, and even this has a number of uncertainties. Arthur
Voobus’s History of the School of Nisibis, the standard study and refer¬
ence tool for the School, offers the fullest attempt to develop an accurate
chronology for the School’s leadership: 24

23 This is discussed at Statutes of the School of Nisibis, 31-32.

24 Voobus’s results are schematized in Tamcke, Der Katholikos-Patriarch SabrTso /.
(596-604) und das Monchtum, 68.

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8 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Narsai

Elisha bar Qozbaye
Abraham of Bet Rabban
John of Bet Rabban
Isho'yahb
Abraham

Flenana of Adiabene

until 503
503 to 510
510 to 569

after 547 or 561/2 or 564
two years around 565/8
?

571 to before 612

Much of this chronology derives from the Ecclesiastical History and the
Cause, neither of which demonstrates a strong interest in accurate dating
and chronology. Therefore, it seems that unless radically new information
is uncovered Voobus’s dating provides the best overall chronology, although
his reading of the sources is questionable at a number of points. 25

It is difficult to determine the School’s precise curriculum, if curriculum
is even the appropriate term to use for pre-modern centers of learning such
as this, where learning was more informal than in modern institutions in
which a clearly delineated course of study is often, if not practised, the
ideal. 26 The titles used in the sources for the different types of teacher may
point to the varying levels of study: the elementary instructor (mhaggydnd),
the reader ( maqrydnd ), and finally the exegete ( mphashshqdnd ), 27 who was
the sole occupant of this office and the head of the School. It is likely that
there was some fluidity between the pedagogical focus of one type of teacher
and another. There were also other instructors, whose role in the hierarchy is
less clear: the teacher ( mallphana ) and the interpreter ( badoqa ). The School
had an administrator in charge of the daily routine, the steward ( rabbayta ).
The term ‘schoolman’ ( eskolaya ) appears as well in the sources, not only for
students, but also for more advanced persons associated with the School.

The level of learning at the School ran across a wide spectrum, from
basic literacy to the study of Aristotelian logic. One unifying factor was
the sociality of study. Unlike the East-Syrian monasteries, where monks
were encouraged to study scripture on their own in the privacy of their
own cells and collective gatherings were limited to weekly Eucharistic
meetings, students at the School studied together and, as the canons attest,

25 For example, he uses the Chronicle ofArbela, a text of questionable, if not authenticity,
then accuracy, to resolve problems in dating (Voobus, History , 132-33).

26 For a more detailed discussion of the curriculum, the offices, and life at the School, see,
e.g., Becker, Fear of God, 87-96.

27 The term mphashshqdnd is often rendered ‘interpreter’ in translations and secondary
literature.

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INTRODUCTION

lived together. This common life of study began with acquiring basic literacy
for those who arrived without the ability to read. Literacy was based on the
Psalter and probably also entailed the study of the liturgy. Some documents
point to a thorough study of much of the New Testament and the Christian
Old Testament. 28 Reading eventually led to interpretation, but it is not clear
where one level of study ended and the next began. For example, we may
assume that the ‘reader’ guided students in more than simply reading, since
below him was the ‘elementary instructor’. However, if the ‘reader’ also
provided interpretation, it is not clear how this differed from the higher
interpretation of the ‘exegete’, who, we are told, led the ‘choir’, a collective
gathering the aim of which is uncertain. 29

The exegesis of the School was heavily derived from the exegetical works
of Theodore of Mopsuestia as they had been translated and subsequently
received by the Church of the East. That Theodore was simply referred to as
‘the exegete’ by the East Syrians demonstrates both the authority his works
held but also the easy correlation that could be drawn between him and the
head of the School, who was also called ‘the exegete’. Most of the exegetical
tradition of the School itself is unfortunately lost with the exception of the
works of Narsai, the first head of the School. 30 Of the numerous poetical
works attributed to Narsai, at least some must have been composed at the
School. Furthermore, even those composed at the School of the Persians
in Edessa may shed some light on the School of Nisibis, inasmuch as the
former was the predecessor of the latter. The sources mention works by a
number of other figures associated with the School of Nisibis, especially
its various head exegetes, but none of these are extant. 31 Traces of these
works can be found in quotation in later exegetical collections, which are
no doubt in part the reason for the disappearance of these earlier works. The
numerous other works attributed to members of the School, for example,
collections of letters, are also, alas, lost.

28 Statutes of the School of Nisibis, 107-09. See also Syriac and Arabic Documents, 185-88.

29 The Syriac term si'ta simply means ‘troop’ or ‘group’, but here seems to be some type
of collective liturgically-based study.

30 Robert Macina, ‘L’homme a l’ecole de Dieu. D’Antioche a Nisibe: Profil hermeneu-
tique, theologique et kerugmatique du mouvement scoliaste nestorien’, Proche-Orient Chretien
32 (1982): 87-124, 263-301; 33 (1983): 39-103. Molenberg, ‘The Silence of the Sources’.
More recently on the East-Syrian exegetical tradition in general, see for example Clemens
Leonhard, Ishodad of Merw’s Exegesis of the Psalms 119 and 139-147: A study of his inter¬
pretation in the light of the Syriac translation of Theodore of Mopsuestia’s commentary (CSCO
587; Louvain: Peeters, 2001), 50-61.

31 The majority of the references to this material are gathered in Voobus, History, passim.

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10 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

The learning that occurred at the School and the kind of intellectual
interaction are possibly represented by the East-Syrian ‘cause’ (‘ ellta ) liter¬
ature, an aetiological genre focusing primarily on explaining the origins of
certain holidays and ritual practices. 32 Several examples of this genre are
extant. In fact, the Cause of the Foundation of the Schools seems to belong to
a subset of this genre, one that provides an explanation for the origins of the
‘school session ( mawtba d-eskole)’. The aetiological interests, the structural
division of information around a formalized list of questions, the emphasis
on sacred days and theological questions, as well as other features of this
genre may be representative of the intellectual interests and approach found
at the School. Texts such as these are written in a rhetorical fashion and may
have been addressed to large audiences.

The use of basic philosophical logic in a number of texts from the
School points to the study of certain Greek philosophical texts, particularly
Syriac translations of the Aristotelian Organon and parts of the Neopla¬
tonic commentary tradition on it. 33 Philosophy itself was not studied at the
School, but rather philosophical texts and ideas were incorporated into the
curriculum where they were practically useful for exegetical and theological
inquiry. The titles of other texts mentioned in the sources yet no longer
extant suggest that students were also introduced to theological polemic and
debate, thus preparing them for proselytising and disputing with Zoroas-
trians, Jews, and heterodox Christians.

The School of Nisibis seems to have gone into decline in the early to
mid-seventh century. 34 After the death of Henana of Adiabene (c. 610), who
was head of the School in the late sixth and early seventh centuries, the sources
become thin, apart from a number of passing references to East Syrians
studying there. It is possible that this decline was due to the controversy
which developed around Flenana, who was accused of introducing heterodox
exegesis and theology into the curriculum and condemned at a council under
the Catholicos Sabrisho' in 605. The Chronicle of Siirt describes a mass
exodus during his tenure of office. 35 However, there were a number of events
at this time, including the Arab defeat of the Sasanian Empire, which led to
radical political, economic, and cultural changes in the region.

32 On this genre, see Becker, Fear of God, 98-112.

33 The Organon (lit. ‘tool’) is the common appellation for Aristotle’s Categories, De Inter¬
pretation, and Prior Analytics 1.1-7.

34 For a more detailed discussion of the School’s decline, see Becker, Fear of God,
197-203.

35 Chronicle of Siirt 2.2.511-12.

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INTRODUCTION

Furthermore, it is possible that the School’s decline occurred due to its
great success as a model institution of learning. Many of the leading figures
of the Church of the East, especially in the sixth and seventh centuries, had
studied at the School of Nisibis and no doubt introduced its learning and
institutional structure as they ascended through the ecclesiastical hierarchy
and spread throughout the Church to various positions of authority, becoming
bishops and heads of monasteries. By the end of the sixth century East-
Syrian schools could be found through much of Sasanian Mesopotamia and
a new scholastic culture had been infused through much of the Church of
the East. The School of Seleucia, which was farther south in the Sasanian
capital, was also another important intellectual centre. 36 However, the sources
refer to numerous schools throughout Mesopotamia, even some in towns of
lesser importance. As mentioned above, these schools varied from complex,
independent institutions, like the School of Nisibis, to small study circles
attached to the local village church. 37 The School of Nisibis fades from our
sources in the early seventh century, but its influence on the Church of the
East is clearly discernible for long time after its apparent decline.

IDENTIFYING BARHADBESHABBA

Two of the most important sources for both the history of the School of
Nisibis and the intellectual life engaged in there are the Cause and the
Ecclesiastical History - specifically the last two chapters of the latter,
which treat respectively the life of Narsai (d. c. 503), the first head of the
School, and that of Abraham of Bet Rabban (d. c. 569), its director through
much of the sixth century. These two texts have both been attributed to a
Barhadbeshabba, but some scholars have identified two distinct persons in
the sources, Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya and Barhadbeshabba of Hulwan. No
one has formally examined the question of the authorship of the Cause and
the Ecclesiastical History, though scholars have in passing expressed views
on this problem. This question and the possibility of clearly differentiating
between the two Barhadbeshabbas needs to be addressed, especially since the
Cause may rely on the Ecclesiastical History, or at least share a source with
it, despite the discrepancies between the two.

Two contemporary figures named Barhadbeshabba are attested in
the sources: Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya and Barhadbeshabba of Hulwan. 38

36 Becker, Fear of God, 157-59. On its founding see the Mingana Fragment in this volume.

37 See note 3 above. For the School of Seleucia, see Becker, Fear of God, 157-59.

38 Barhadbeshabba is not an uncommon Syriac name. It is the equivalent of ‘Kuriakos’ or

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12 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

‘Arbaya is a locative appellation used for someone from the region of Bet
‘Arbaye, called ‘Arabistan’ in Middle Persian, named after the Arabs who
settled there. 39 In antiquity it was the diocese of the city of Nisibis. Flulwan,
or Halwan, was in eastern Iran, near Hamadan, not far from the contempo¬
rary border with Iraq. 40 Aside from these two figures there are also several
references to a Barhadbeshabba that may correspond to either or even
neither of the two.

The early fourteenth-century catalogue of ‘Abdishcf has the following
entry for Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya:

Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya wrote a book of treasures in three parts, and disputes
(i drashe ) with all religions (dehlan) and their refutation, and an ecclesiastical
(history), and a cause of the followers (Svr. bet, or ‘school’) of Diodore . and
a commentary ( mcishlmanuta ) on Mark the evangelist and (the psalms of)
David. 41

Scholars have commonly understood the ‘ecclesiastical history’ mentioned
here as referring to the text entitled in its manuscript ‘The History of the
Holy Fathers Who were Persecuted because of the Truth’ , 42 A late manuscript
attributes a hymn to the same person. 43 Perhaps the commentary on Psalms
mentioned by ‘Abdisho 1 is the source of the quotation attributed to a Barh
adbeshabba in a later psalm commentary. 44 Similarly, the seventh-century
monastic writer, Dadisho* of Bet Qatraye, cites a ‘Book of Treasures’,
which he attributes to Barhadbeshabba the Teacher ( mallphdnd ), probably
the same person. 45

Barhadbeshabba of Flulwan is referred to by the Khuzistan Chronicle, an
East-Syrian chronicle probably composed no later than the 660s CE (the last

‘Dominicus’, i.e. born on Sunday.

39 For a discussion of the place name, see D. L. Kennedy, ‘The Place-Name “Arbeia”’,
Britannia 17 (1986): 332-33.

40 J.-M. Fiey, Pour un Oriens Christianus Novus, 92-93; idem, ‘Medie chretienne’,
360-68.

41 Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.1.169 (Chap. XCIII).

42 Barhadbeshabba, La secondpartie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 495 and 631.10-11.

43 Cambridge manuscript of the 16th or 17th century, William Wright, Catalogue of Syriac
Manuscripts (2 vols.; Cambridge, 1901), II: 1083 (Oo. 1. 22).

44 Ms Ming. Syr. 58. His name is in the list of those quoted on 17b of this manuscript,
Alphonse Mingana, Catalogue of the Mingana Collection of Manuscripts (Cambridge,
1948-1963), col. 159.

45 Dadisho‘ Qatraya, Commentaire du Livre d ‘Abba Isai'e (logoi I-XV), ed. and trans. R.
Draguet (CSCO 326-27; Louvain: Peeters, 1972), 263.22 (trans. 203); Discourse 15.12. This is
cited by Voobus as a reference to Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya (Voobus, History , 281).

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INTRODUCTION

datable event is in 652 CE). 46 In a discussion of figures from the early seventh
century the text states: ‘Famous in composition was Barhadbeshabba of
Hulwan’. 47 This same Barhadbeshabba is listed in the Synodicon Orientate,
a collection of council acts of the Church of the East, as one of the signato¬
ries to the record for the Council of Mar Gregory I of 605 CE 48 The strong
reaffirmation of the orthodoxy of all the writings of Theodore of Mopsuestia
at this council and the one before it in 596 can be read as a positioning
against flenana of Adiabene, the director of the School of Nisibis praised
in the Cause, who was accused of flouting Theodore’s authority in his own
exegesis. 49

The Chronicle of Siirt suggests that these two figures referred to as
Barhadbeshabba are the same person. 50 The Chronicle contains a list of
those who left the School of Nisibis due to the controversy caused by H
enana of Adiabene.

Among those who left the School of Nisibis there were Isho'yahb of Gedala, who
later became Catholicos (i.e. Isho'yahb II), Hadbeshabba ‘Arbaya who became
metropolitan of Hulwan; Isho‘yahb of Adiabene who became Catholicos (i.e.
Isho'yahb III); Paul the exegete in the monastery of Abimelek, Michael the
teacher, and many other wise men. 51

This passage would seem to settle the question. However, there remains the
possibility that its author is conflating two distinct figures. The Chronicle is
rather late, composed in either the tenth or eleventh century CE. Ambigui¬
ties in the sources also seem to derive from the apparent fame of at least
one Barhadbeshabba: for example, that sources such as the ninth-century
biblical commentator Isho‘dad of Merv and the later Gannat bussdme
0 Garden of Delights, a commentary on the East-Syrian lectionary) merely

46 Also known as ‘Guidi’s Chronicle’, after the editor of the Chronica Minora ; ‘Chronicum
Anonymum’, ed. and tr. I. Guidi (CSCO Scr. Syr. 1-2; Leipzig, 1903). Hoyland, Seeing Islam
As Others Saw It, 185. Brock, ‘Syriac Historical Writing’, 25, gives the date of c. 670-80.
For a recent English translation of the text from the beginning (15) up to 30.19 (the text ends
at 39), see Geoffrey Greatrex and Samuel N. C. Lieu, eds., The Roman Eastern Frontier and
the Persian Wars: Part II AD 363-630, A narrative sourcebook (London: Routledge, 2002),
229-37.

47 ‘Chronicum Anonymum’, 22.25-26 (Latin 20.23-24).

48 Synodicon Orientale, 214 (491).

49 E.g., Brock, ‘The Christology of the Church of the East’, 127, 139. See also Becker,
Fear of God, 197-203.

50 Hoyland, Seeing Islam As Others Saw It, 443^4-6.

51 Chronicle of Siirt 2.2.511-12. Note the minor corruption of the name ‘Barhadbeshabba’
in the Arabic.

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14 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

refer to Barhadbeshabba without any appellation suggests that he was well
known enough not to require explicit designation. 52

The Cause was composed between 581 and c. 610 CE. The text’s refer¬
ence to Isho‘yahb of Arzon, who became Isho‘yahb I, the Catholicos of
the East, provides the terminus post quem of 581 CE. 53 A definite terminus
ante quem is more difficult to determine; we only know that the text was
written within the lifetime of Flenana of Adiabene, who lived until c. 610.
The text would have been written perhaps before the mid-590s if the author
is identical with the Barhadbeshabba who participated in opposing Flenana
at the Council of 605 CE and left the School some time after.

Unfortunately the manuscript tradition of the Cause does not help us in
identifying the author. The older manuscripts upon which Addai Scher, the
editor of the text, based his edition were either lost in 1915 when he was
murdered or may have eventually been deposited in Baghdad, but at this
point in time it is not possible to verify whether they are there and if they
have survived to the present. The extant manuscripts are late copies made
by scholars such as Scher and Alphonse Mingana and therefore attributions
to Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya are of lesser value. 54

If the same Barhadbeshabba who rejected Henana also composed the
Cause, how are we to understand the significant praise the Cause gives
Henana? It could be the standard laudatory comments made about the head
of the School, composed before he became a controversial figure, or an
apology for a leader under attack - or even an attempt to prescribe to Henana
how he should be. 55 This is a matter of interpretation. The Cause's state¬
ments linking Flenana to Theodore of Mopsuestia may be taken as a standard
practice tying the head of the School to an authoritative figure of the past
or as an intentionally defensive posture, since Flenana had been accused of
flouting Theodore’s exegetical authority. If the author is defending Flenana,
this would suggest the text was written later in his career, after his views
became subject to attack. This would then date the text to the early 590s,

52 Isho‘dad of Merv, Commentaire sur VAncient Testament, ed. J.-M. Voste et C. van den
Eynde (CSCO 126-86 [passim] ; Louvain: L. Durbecq, 1950-1981), Genese 1:81. Gannat
bussame : Ms Manch. Ryl. Syr. 41. Baumstark, Geschichte, 136 n. 6 also refers to a citation of
a Barhadbeshabba in an anonymous New Testament commentary.

53 Cause 397.11-398.2. cf. Ortiz de Urbina, Patrologia Syriaca , 133. See also Voobus,
History, 295.

54 On the manuscripts of the Cause, see Appendix I.

55 Cause 390.7-393.3; on the controversy surrounding Henana, see also the discussion in
Becker , Fear of God, 197-203.

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INTRODUCTION

when Henana began to cause a controversy, but before this controversy had
stirred up the Church at large.

The main problem in identifying the author of the Cause depends on
whether he is the same Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya who composed the Eccle¬
siastical History. This text, the terminus post quern for which derives from
the death of Abraham of Bet Rabban in 569 CE, is the other major narra¬
tive source for the history of the School of Nisibis. 56 As stated above, few
scholars have treated in any detail the questions surrounding the identity of
the author of the Cause and his relationship to the author of the Ecclesias¬
tical History and whether Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya and Barhadbeshabba
of Hulwan were one and the same person. 57 More often the issue has been
mentioned in passing. 58 The scholars who have addressed this issue in any
way at all include: Mingana, 59 Scher, 60 Nau, 61 Baumstark, 62 Hermann, 63
Ortiz de Urbina, 64 Voobus, 65 and Fiey. 66 Following Fiey, Stephen Gero
ignores the ‘Arbaya / Hulwan question and argues that the Ecclesiastical
History belonged to Barhadbeshabba, but that the Cause could not be his
because its adulatory tone towards Henana of Adiabene does not fit with
Barhadbeshabba’s later stance against him. 67 Gero suggests that ‘[sjince
orations of this sort were fairly common, one could argue that a medieval

56 For this date, see, e.g., Voobus, History , 210.

57 Various authors have employed both of these sources and not taken a stand regarding
their relationship or the identity of their authors (e.g. Martin Tamcke, Der Katholikos-Patriarch
Sabrisd I. (596-604) und das Monchtum).

58 E. g., G. J. Reinink, “‘Edessa Grew Dim and Nisibis Shone Forth’”, 81 and n. 15;
Synodicon Orientate , 479 n. 3; Jerome Labourt, Le Christianisme dans VEmpire Perse, sous la
Dynastie Sassanide (224-632), 223; Rubens Duval, La litterature Syriaque (Paris: V. Lecoffre,
1907), 204. Chabot seems to be ignorant of the issue: J.-B. Chabot, Litterature Syriaque (Paris:
Bloud et Gay, 1934), 59.

59 Mingana, Reponse a M. Vabbe J.-B. Chabot, apropos de la chronique de Barhadbsabba,
4ff.

60 Cause 322; see also Scher, ‘Etude supplemental sur les ecrivains syriens orientaux’,
15.

61 Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 494.

62 Baumstark, Geschichte, 136.

63 Hermann, ‘Die Schule von Nisibis vom 5. bis 7. Jahrhundert’, 94 implies that he sees
the texts as by two different authors.

64 Ortiz de Urbina, Patrologia Syriaca, 132-33.

65 Voobus, History, as he sees them as two persons, he treats them respectively, 280-82
and 294-96.

66 J.-M. Fiey, Jalons pour une histoire de Veglise en Iraq (CSCO 310; Louvain: Secretariat
du CorpusSCO, 1970), 25-26.

67 Gero, Barsauma, 5-6 and notes.

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16 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

scribe who knew merely that Barhadbeshabba and Flenana were contempo¬
raries, but was not acquainted with the history of their relationship, attrib¬
uted the (anonymous) oration to this 6th-century writer’ , 68

However, while it has been noted that the Council of 605, along with
those of 585 and 596, seemed to be aimed at the theological aberrations of
Flenana of Adiabene and his followers, and while it is true that the Cause
contains a veritable panegyric of the same Flenana, this does not necessarily
prove, as Gero would argue, that the author is not the same person who
signed the acts of 605 and left the School. From a terminus post quem of 581
to the early 590s or even later Barhadbeshabba could have reevaluated his
relationship with Flenana and shifted his support to Flenana’s adversaries.
In other words, he could have changed his mind.

The identity of the two authors of the Cause and the Ecclesiastical
History could be maintained if we take ‘Abdisho"s reference to the ‘Cause
of the Followers of Diodore’ as a recherche reference to the Cause. 69 There
certainly does not seem to have been an actual group of ‘Diodorians’ within
the Church of the East. ‘Abdisho‘’s odd appellation for the work could be
explained as an attempt to fit the seven-syllable metrical line. However, this
reading could in turn be countered by suggesting that even if ‘Abdisho 1 is
referring to the Cause he may be conflating the two Barhadbeshabbas, as the
Chronicle of Siirt may also be doing, or that he may simply be attributing
a text of an unknown author to a known one, as Gero suggests. Further
evidence may come to light in the future, but to a certain extent the question
of whether the Cause and the Ecclesiastical History have the same author is
insignificant. Individual personalities are of lesser relevance here, since both
texts, whether by the same author or not, were written in the same institu¬
tion within a few years of one another. Furthermore, as I argue in Appendix
III, the Cause is dependent on the Ecclesiastical History, or at least shares
a common source with it.

ON THE MANUSCRIPTS, TRANSLATION, NOTES AND TERMS

Manuscript variants, especially the numerous minor ones for the Cause,
are not included in the translation and commentary, except when they are
of particular interest. For the ‘Letter’ of Simeon of Bet Arsham I relied on

68 Ibid. n. 26.

69 Scher himself mentions this connection but then rejects it because Diodore does not play
a major role in the text (Cause 322).

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INTRODUCTION

Assemani’s text, as well as the one manuscript, Ms Vatican Syriac 135, which
has been reproduced on DVD by Brigham Young University. 70 Although I
used the manuscript in preparing this translation, I do not provide a thorough
commentary on it. I employed it specifically where it differed from or
illuminated Assemani’s text. I was able to glance at the one manuscript of
the Ecclesiatical History several years ago, but I have not had the luxury
of consulting it while producing this volume. I wanted this volume to serve
as a handy introduction to these texts and the larger cultural world from
which they derive. It seemed superfluous to do excessive manuscript work
on them, especially since there are numerous other texts that have not been
published at all. Apart from the extra material published by Mingana (i.e.
the ‘Fragment’), the translation of the Cause is based on Scher’s text and
notes (see the discussion of the manuscripts in Appendix I). My translation
often agrees with Scher’s French version, even when he at times translates
T from the apparatus without mentioning that he is altering his base text. I
comment in the notes on those few occasions where I resort to his critical
apparatus in disagreement with him on the text. Furthermore, I usually note
where my translation differs radically from his, and I am usually far more
literal in my rendering.

In translating these texts I have tried to be as literal as possible without
making the English too awkward for the reader. My only addition to the
texts themselves are the italicized section headings included throughout.
Occasionally I have taken some liberties to bring out the particular sense of a
phrase, but in general I preferred to keep the English as close to the Syriac as
possible. I have on occasion translated biblical quotations to fit the context
of quotation, rather than employing the sense they would have in the original
biblical context. For example, it would be misleading to translate talmida,
the standard word for a ‘disciple’ of Jesus (equivalent to Gr. mathetes ) as
simply ‘disciple,’ since this would lose the vividness of the pedagogical
understanding of Christianity that we find in the Cause. Therefore I trans¬
late it as ‘student’ to better convey how the author would have probably
understood this term. 71

The notes have been written in order to clarify and highlight certain
aspects of the texts. I have provided some parallels where pertinent, but did
not do an extensive and systematic reading of the Syriac and Greek sources
that might have been used to further illuminate these texts. The notes would

70 Kristian S. Heal and Carl W. Griffin, eds., Syriac Manuscripts from the Vatican Library,
Volume 1. DVD-Rom (Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana; Brigham Young University, 2005).

71 E.g., Cause 373.2.

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18 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

have become cumbersome, if 1 had noted every connection, for example,
between the Cause and the works of Narsai and Theodore of Mopsuestia.
Nor was I systematic in pointing out Greek loan words. I ignore those words
that had already become standard in the Syriac language by the fifth century
CE. 1 employed the following abbreviations for cross-references to notes in
other works: SL = ‘Letter’ of Simeon of Bet Arsham; LN = Life of Narsai;
LA = Life of Abraham of Bet Rabban; CS = Cause of the Foundation of
the Schools.

Finally, there is a glossary of selected terms at the back of the book.
1 have used more accurate and less theologically offensive terms in this
volume and they are explained there.

The bibliography only includes those volumes mentioned more than
once in the notes.

THE TRANSLITERATION OF THE SYRIAC ALPHABET
IN THIS VOLUME

I have transliterated Syriac words throughout the volume, instead of rendering
them in a script legible only to those who know the Syriac language. In this
way, readers can see, for example, the derivation of certain Syriac words from
Greek, and those who know another Semitic language, such as Hebrew, can
make further sense of the notes. In transliterating I have tried to use a system
that would be both simple and accurate. Of the so-called bgadkephat letters,
that is, consonants that have both aspirated and unaspirated forms, I have
only distinguished between the unaspirated ‘p’ and the aspirated ‘ph’, since
this distinction requires a major change in pronunciation for an English
speaker. I have added ‘e’ to some names where a half vowel would techni¬
cally appear (e), like Flenana and Barhadbeshabba, to make pronunciation
easier. Since they are not marked in the Syriac script, I have not differenti¬
ated by means of a macron between historically long and short vowels (o/o
and u/u). In the table of parallels below I provide the Syriac alphabet and
the transliterated equivalents used in this volume, as well as some of the
alternative transliterations readers may find in other volumes.

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INTRODUCTION

Syriac

Transliteration

Other Volumes

’/unmarked when frontal/vowel letter

b/bh

-X

g/gh

d/dh

w/vowel letter

y/vowel letter

k/kh

unmarked

p/ph

s, ts

t/th

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SIMEON OF BET ARSHAM, ‘ LETTER ’ ON
THE *NESTORIANIZATION’ OF PERSIA

INTRODUCTION

All but one of the sources for the School of the Persians in Edessa derive
from at least several years after its closure, and some of them are from
decades after its heyday. Furthermore, the various passing references to the
School and its closure have only recently been examined. 1 One of the most
commonly cited sources for the reconstruction of the history of the School,
the sequence of events surrounding its closure, and what was known by
scholars in the past as the subsequent ‘Nestorianization’ of the Christian
communities of the Sasanian Empire is a ‘letter’ by Simeon of Bet Arsham,
the contentious West-Syrian bishop of the early sixth century. Simeon’s
letter is extant in one manuscript, Ms Vatican Syriac 135. The text was first
published with a Latin translation by Joseph Simeon Assemani (1687-1768
CE) in his Bibliotheca Orientalis Clementino-Vaticana, a collection which
served as the main resource in Syriac Studies until the rapid growth of the
field in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. 2

Simeon’s life is described by his student, John of Ephesus, in his Lives
of the Eastern Saints. 3 He played a role in the Church not unlike that of
Philoxenus of Mabbug (d. 523), Severus of Antioch (d. 538), John of Telia
(d. 538), and Jacob Burd'ana (d. 578), after whom the West Syrians received
the name ‘Jacobites’. All these men struggled to promote the Miaphysite

1 Becker, Fear of God, 41-61.

2 Biblioteca Orientalis 1.346-58. On the Bibliotheca Orientalis and its influence, see Sebas¬
tian Brock, 'The Development of Syriac Studies’, in The Edward Hincks Bicentenary Lectures,
ed. Kevin J. Cathcart (Dublin: Department of Near East Languages, University College Dublin,
1994), 98-99, 109. There is also a French translation in Garsoi'an, L’eglise Annenienne at
450-56, but this is clearly based on Assemani's Latin text.

3 John of Ephesus, Lives of the Eastern Saints, 17: 137-58 (Chapter X). See Wright,
History, 79-81; Barsoum, History, 97; Baumstark, Geschichte, 145 46. The one full study of
this text is Harvey, Asceticism and Society in Crisis: John of Ephesus and 'The Lives of the
Eastern Saints’. Later sources on Simeon seem to depend on John’s account (e.g., Garsoi'an,
L’eglise annenienne, 186 n. 136).

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22 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

cause and in doing so helped to develop a separate Miaphysite ecclesiastical
hierarchy. 4 They are the true fathers of today’s Syrian Orthodox Church.
Simeon became bishop of Bet Arsham, possibly near the Tigris, not far
from Seleucia-Ctesiphon, 5 and seems to have spent his career canvassing
for the Miaphysite position. He was known as ‘The Disputer’, because he
engaged in public debate with East Syrians, most notably winning against
the East-Syrian Catholicos Babai, after which Simeon received his bishopric
(between 497 and 502/3 CE). 6 The latest reference to Simeon places him
in Constantinople some time before the death of the empress Theodora in
548 CE.

Simeon’s works include an anaphora (the Eucharistic portion of the
divine liturgy) attributed to him and, more importantly, a document on
which much research has focused, his letter describing events in Arabia,
including the persecution of Christians by Dhu Nuwas, the Jewish king of
the Himyarites. 7 This text, which is an important attestation of Christianity
in southern Arabia at the turn of the sixth century, comes down to us in
more than one recension and has received far more scholarly interest than
the so-called ‘Letter on Barsauma, Bishop of Nisibis and the heresy of the
Nestorians’. ‘The Letter' has been studied closely only once and this is in
a recent publication. 8 Elsewhere I have examined the structure and rhetoric
of parts of this document. 9

4 See Ernest Honigmann, Eveques et Eveches Monophysites d’Asie Anterieure au Vie Siecle
(CSCO Subsidia 2; Louvain, 1951) and more recently, Volker-Lorenz Menze, ‘The Making
of a Church: The Syrian Orthodox in the Shadow of Byzantium and the Papacy’ (PhD thesis:
Princeton University, 2004).

5 Barsoum, History , 211 n. 224, suggests an etymology for the place name and that it was
most likely near Ctesiphon.

6 The Catholicos is the spiritual head of the Church of the East, equivalent to the Pope in
Rome. His see was in Seleucia-Ctesphon.

7 Arthur Jeffrey, ‘Three Documents on the History of Christianity in South Arabia’, Anglican
Theological Review 27 (1945): 195-205; Axel Moberg, The Book of the Himyarites (Lund: C.
W. K. Gleerup, 1924); Irfan Shahid, The Martyrs ofNajran: New Documents (Subsidia Hagio-
graphica 49; Bruxelles: Societe des Bollandistes, 1971), esp. Syriac text in Section III and
translation in Section IV (43-64). More recently, see Christian J. Robin, Joelle Beaucamp, and
Frangoise Briquel-Chatonnet, ‘La persecution des chretiens de Nagran et la chronologie himya-
rite’, Aram 11-12 (1999-2000), 15-83. Aloys Grillmeier with Theresia Hainthaler, Christ in
Christian Tradition 2/4 (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1996), 309ff., with a general analysis on
pp. 305-23.

8 Grillmeier and Hainthaler, Jesus der Christus, 262-78 (‘Fiinftes Kapitel: Der persische
Disputator Simeon von Bet Arsam und seine antinestorianische Positionsbestimmung’).

9 Becker, Fear of God, 47-51.

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SIMEON OF BET ARSHAM

It is difficult to date this text precisely, although scholars have generally
placed it in the very early sixth century. 10 It contains a reference to Anasta-
sius (491-518 CE), 11 which may point to a date before 518, but this depends
on how we interpret the relevant passage. Simeon’s failure to refer to lustin
and Justinian may be simply an attempt to avoid the uncomfortable fact of
the new anti-Miaphysite regimes of these emperors, who would oversee the
reassertion of Chalcedonian orthodoxy from 518 onward. References to the
East-Syrian Catholicos, Babai, and to Philoxenus of Mabbug, if they are
taken to be deceased - again a matter of interpretation - suggest that it was
composed after 502/3 and 523 respectively. 12 De Halleux and others have
speculated that it could be from the time of the Armenian Council of Dvin
(505/6), to which the document makes reference. 13

Hainthaler divides the text into five parts: 1. The Genealogy of ‘Nesto-
rianism' (Bibliotheca Orientalis 1.346-51); 2. The School of the Persians
(351-354); 3. The Apostasy of the Khuzites and the Persians from the true
faith of the fathers (354); 4. The Orthodox Faith (354-356); and 5. Anath¬
emas against those with dissenting views (356-358). 14 It is in fact not even
clear whether this text was originally a letter. The title itself is question¬
able. 15 It is labelled as a letter in its single attestation, Vatican Syriac 135, an
undated manuscript probably from the seventh or eighth centuries. 16 The text
itself seems to begin in medias res and lacks any references to an addressee
nor does it have an epistolary closing.

However useful Simeon’s letter is as a description of the larger histor¬
ical context for the School of the Persians in Edessa and the origin of the
School of Nisibis, we must remain aware of his own polemical goals and the
position he held as one of the first West-Syrians to foray into the East-Syrian
dominated realm of Persia. This document, composed by a West Syrian
known for his polemical skills and fiery rhetoric, does not provide a clear
and unbiased account of the events of the late fifth and early sixth centuries.
In fact, it can be taken as a textbook example of the creative flair of heresio-

10 Garsoian, L’eglise armenienne, 450 says the date is imprecise; Gero, Barsauma of
Nisibis, 9: ‘an early 6 th -century letter’; No date given: Wright, Short History of Syriac Litera¬
ture, 81; Baumstark, Geschichte, 146.

11 Simeon of Bet Arsham, Epistola, 356.

12 Ibid. 358 and 352-53.

13 Ibid. 356; De Halleux, Philoxene de Mabbog, 4 n. 9; Grillmeier and Hainthaler, Jesus
der Christus, 265; Garsoian, L’eglise armenienne, 161-66, 455 n. 63.

14 Grillmeier and Hainthaler, Jesus der Christus, 266.

15 Ibid. 265; Gero, Barsauma, 9-10.

16 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (Paris: Maisonneuve, 1926), III.213-15.

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24 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

logical literature, with its harsh polemic and slippery argument by associa¬
tion. One noteworthy feature of Simeon’s text is its use of a genealogical
tree to demonstrate how contemporary ‘heretics’ are the ideological descen¬
dants of a long line of errant, evil thinkers extending back to Jesus’ day. 17
This creation of a spurious chain of transmission running from ‘heretic’
to ‘heretic’ through the generations is in fact the inverse of the kind of
scholastic chains of transmission one finds in East-Syrian texts, such as the
Cause of the Foundation of the Schools. Such a usage of the same literary
technique by both those endorsing an institution and those criticizing it
derives from a common Christian practice going back to the second century
CE, which in turn reflects a common Greco-Roman technique for detailing
the lines of transmission in medical and philosophical schools and which
also appears in Rabbinic sources. 18

What Simeon describes as the spread of ‘Nestorian’ heretics into the
Sasanian Empire does not reflect an innovation in the theology of the Church
of the East. 19 In fact, it seems the Church of the East had long-standing ties to
the theology wrongly characterized as ‘Nestorian’. This is because the early
spread of Christianity eastward into the Parthian and then Sasanian Empires
was in part through Antioch. Antiochene theology lies behind what was
labelled ‘Nestorianism’, and therefore the flight of Dyophysite Christians
eastward only reinforced certain theologically conservative tendencies in
the East. In other words, I do not think Simeon’s letter is as important as it
has been taken to be by historians. It does not demonstrate the ‘Nestorianiza-
tion’ of the East, but rather the deep historical connections that created an
affinity between ‘Nestorians’ and the Church of the East. Apart from serving
as an example of a heresiological attempt to malign certain Christians in the
East, Simeon’s letter confirms a link connecting late fifth-century Edessene
followers of a traditional Antiochene theology, the School of the Persians in
Edessa, and the newly founded School of Nisibis.

17 For a similar chain by one of his contemporaries, see Andre de Halleux, ‘La dixieme
lettre de Philoxene aux monasteres du Beit Gaugal’, 1-17 (pp. 28-40); see also idem, ‘Die
Genealogie des Nestorianismus nach der fruhmonophysitischen Theologie’, OC 66 (1982):
1-14, and Witold Witakowski, ‘Syrian Monophysite Propaganda in the Fifth to Seventh Centu¬
ries’, in Aspects of Late Antiquity and Early Byzantium. Colloquium of the Swedish Research
Institute in Istanbul 31 May-5 June, 1992 , ed. L. Ryden and J. O. Rosenqvist (Swedish Research
Institute in Istanbul Transactions 4; Stockholm, 1993), 57-66.

18 See, for example, Elias Bi[c]kerman[n], ‘La Chaine de la Tradition Pharisienne’, Revue
Biblique 59 (1952): 44-54.

19 Becker, Fear of God, 73-74.

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SIMEON OF BET ARSHAM

THE ‘LETTER’ OF SIMEON OF BEIT ARSHAM:
TRANSLATION AND NOTES

[346] (24a 1) 1 The Letter of the Blessed Mar Shcm'on of Bet Arsham, 2
which he wrote on account of Barsauma and the Heresy 3 of the Nestorians, 4
which demonstrates whence was its beginning and at what time it descended
to the land of the Persians.

The Genealogy of ‘Nestorianism’

For just as the true faith of us Christians took its beginning from Abraham,
the first 5 of the fathers, by the promise, which was from God: In your seed
the nations will be blessed, 6 that is, Christ, 7 as it is written, and because of
the true faith of Abraham - he was called the father of all nations to which
we ourselves belong 8 9 - in this way also the error of the Nestorians began
from Hannan and Caiphas, the high priests, as well as from the rest of the
Jews of that time.'* For those Jews regarded Christ as a human being, as they
were saying: You are blaspheming and, although you are a human being,
you make yourself God. 10 This (opinion) was passed down (24a2) from the
Jews of that time. Some were calling him a human being, others a righteous
man, others a prophet, a good teacher, and the king [347] of Israel. But
others were calling him Beelzebub, the head of the demons, 11 a blasphemer,
and a transgressor of the law, and there was a division among the Jews
on account of him, but both sides thought he was human. It is this same

1 I provide both the Assemani page numbers as well as the columns in Ms Vatican Syriac
135.

2 The Ms is corrupt here. It has rshm without the aleph and with a short e vowel marked
between the letters sh and m. Such vowels are rare in the manuscript.

3 Syr. heresis, from Gr. hairesis.

4 Syr. Nesturyane.

5 Syr. resh, lit. ‘head’. The source of this expression is Rom 4:1 of the Peshitta version. For
the same expression, see notes LA 77 and CS 518.

6 Gen 22:18.

7 The Syriac word ‘Christ’ ( mshiha ) may also be rendered ‘Messiah’ in English.

8 Cf. Gal 3:6-9.

9 Cf. Lk 3:2; Jn 18:13-14, 23-24; Acts 4:6.

10 Jn 10:33. Cf. ‘Is there a greater insult than that which the new Jews of our day utter,
blaspheming Christ face to face, subtracting from the honor (due to) Him, reviling His glory, and
saying to Him, “Thou art a man, and Thou makest Thyself God?”’, Philoxenus, Three Letters ,
107 (text 148^19) (‘First Letter to the Monks of Beth-GaugaT).

11 Cf.Mt 12:24; Mk 3:22; Lk 11:15.

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26 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

opinion which has been passed down among the Nestorians until today. 12
Now Simon the Sorcerer, 13 whose Samaritan race was akin to the Jews in
certain matters, 14 succeeded 15 the Jews, and he opposed the Apostles in the
city of Rome, while extolling himself and saying, ‘I myself am great!,’ and
he thought himself Christ, 16 just as he succeeded 17 Hannan and Caiphas, his
companions and masters.

Ebion 18 succeeded Simon, and Artemon 19 Ebion, and he was succeeded

12 Those on the Miaphysite side of the Christological spectrum tended to equate Dyophysite
positions with Judaism since both were thought to deny the divinity of Christ. Cf. Lucas Van
Rompay, ‘A Letter of the Jews to the Emperor Marcian Concerning the Council of Chalcedon’,
OLP 12 (1981): 215-24. Furthermore, the text reflects standard Christian anti-Jewish arguments.
By placing the roots of heresy within Judaism the author shows implicitly how ‘heretics’
continue the persecution of Christ and his followers supposedly begun by the Jews.

13 Simon Magus. Following New Testament and later usage, the Syriac employs the Greek
form of his name, Simon, although it may originally derive from the Semitic Shem‘on. The
Syriac translates the pejorative epithet ‘Magus’ with harrdsha, a standard word for ‘magician’
or ‘enchanter’. It was common to attribute the origins of heresy to Simon Magus. This point
as well as much of the following early Christian history probably derive here from Eusebius’s
Ecclesiastical History , which was in circulation in a Syriac version at least by the early fifth
century, perhaps earlier. See the edition of W. Wright and N. McLean, The Ecclesiastical History
of Eusebius in Syriac.

14 It is possible that Simeon composed this text later in his career, in which case this
connection between the Jews and the Samaritans would also call to mind for his audience
the failed Samaritan Revolt of 529 CE. A Christian audience would certainly be aware of the
‘rebelliousness’ of the Jews and their subsequent ‘punishment’ after the revolts of the first and
second centuries.

15 The idiom here and in the following is Syr. qabbel min, lit. ‘he received from’. I translate
it as ‘succeed’ because qabbel does not have an explicit object as it is used here and also by
analogy with the use of the same idiom to translate the Greek diadechetai in the Syriac version
of Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History, e.g. 1.7.12.

16 Acts 8:9ff.

17 Assemani’s vocalized text has the passive form mqabbal ( h)wd, though his Latin trans¬
lation renders it as the active. The Syr. leh is either the object of the active mqabbel, or an
ethical dative with it, or it expresses agency with the passive mqabbal. The Ms does not help
to resolve this ambiguity.

18 Already by the second century heresiologists were referring to the founder of the epony¬
mous Ebionites, a commonly condemned group of ‘Jewish-Christians’ whose name actually
reflects what is apparently their own self-allocation, ‘the poor’ (Hebr. ebydn) (cf. Gal 2:10).
E.g. Hippolytus, Refutatio Omnium Haeresium, ed. M. Marcovich (Berlin: de Gruyter, 1986),
7.22.

19 This figure about whom little is known lived until the late third century, since he seems
to have been alive at the time that Paul of Samosata was accused of following his teaching
(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 5.28; 7.30).

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SIMEON OF BET ARSHAM

by Paul of Samosata, 20 who was for some time bishop of the city of Antioch
in Syria in the days of the pagan kings of the Romans, when Constantine, 21
(24b 1) the faithful (and) true 22 king of the Romans, had not yet begun to
rule, because there was no fear (of God) among 23 the kings of the Romans.
This Paul of Samosata was bold and he blasphemed more than Simon the
Sorcerer, Ebion, and Artemon, his masters, and he said about the blessed
Mary, ‘Mary gave birth to a mere human being 24 and she did not remain in
her virginity after she gave birth’ , 2S He called Christ created, made, mortal,
and a son by grace. 26 He spoke about himself, ‘I too, if I wanted, would
be Christ because I and Christ are one nature’. By Paul of Samosata the
heresy of the two natures, their individual properties and operations, 27 was
demonstrated.

[348] Paul was succeeded by Diodore of Tarsus 28 - the city of Cilicia
- who from his youth was on the side of the Macedonian heresy, which
blasphemes against the Holy Spirit. 29 When Diodore became a student of

20 Paul of Samosata, the third-century bishop of Antioch (c. 260-68), was deposed for his
controversial Christological views (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 7.28-30). See U. M. Lang,
‘The Christological Controversy at the Synod of Antioch in 268/9’, JTS 51 (2000): 54-80.

21 Constantine the Great (306-37).

22 Assemani perhaps correctly translates this asyndeton as ‘orthodox’ ( orthodoxus ). See
note 103 below.

23 Syr. men , lit. ‘from’.

24 East-Syrian texts regularly refute this Christological title (cf. Gr. psilds anthropos )
{Nestorian Christological Texts , 61.22-23 [38.27f.]).

25 For the source and authenticity of this attribution, see Grillmeier and Hainthaler, Jesus
der Christus, 268-69.

26 Syr. bra d-taybuta, lit. ‘son of grace’. ‘Hence since what is by grace is not by nature and
what is by nature is not by grace, there are not two sons, according to thy mode of reasoning. He
indeed who is son by grace and not by nature is not truly son, it remains that the glory of true
Sonship exist in Him Who is so by Nature not by grace, that is, in God the Word Who is forth
of God the Father.’ P. E. Pusey, ‘Cyril of Alexandria, Against Diodore of Tarsus and Theodore
of Mopsuestia (fragments of book 2)’, Library of the Fathers of the Church 47 (1881): 347.

27 Syr. ihidayathon and ma ‘bdanwathon (each has the plural masculine possessive suffix)
are equivalent to the Greek Christological technical terms, idiotetes and energeiai.

28 Diodore of Tarsus, d. c. 390, is the third of the ‘Nestorian’ triumvirate of authoritative
Greek fathers, along with Nestorius and Theodore of Mopsuestia. His extant works, often only
in fragments due to his post-mortem condemnation, demonstrate his Antiochene theological
and exegetical leanings. Diodore’s influence also derives from his institutional work: he was a
major player at the Council of Constantinople in 381 and founded a monastery outside Antioch
known for its scriptural study. Theodore of Mopsuestia and John Chrysostom were among his
pupils. Most recently, see Robert C. Hill, trans., Diodore of Tarsus: commentary on Psalms
1-51 (Boston: Brill; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2005).

29 This refers to the theological position of the ‘Macedonians’, named after Macedonius

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28 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

the Christians I, * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 30 and became bishop of Tarsus in Cilicia he increased the
Macedonian heresy. He also divided the natures and their individual proper¬
ties and operations 31 in Christ, (24b2) and he reckoned Christ a human
being, created, made, mortal, sharing in our nature, 32 and a son by grace. 33
He followed after Paul of Samosata, his master.

Theodore of Mopsuestia 34 in Cilicia succeeded Diodore. This man inter¬
preted 35 all the books of the Old and New (Testaments), and in all his interpre¬
tations 36 and homilies 37 he demonstrates the Jewish opinion he holds about
Christ, as Diodore and Paul, his masters. 38 These (ideas), which (derive)
from Simon the Sorcerer, Paul, and Diodore, he increased and confirmed.
He reckoned Christ a human being, created, made, mortal, sharing in our

I, the Arian bishop of Constantinople (342^46, 351-60, d. after 360), against whom Nicene

Christians rallied in the late fourth century. The Macedonians did not understand the Holy

Spirit to be coequal with the Father and the Son. Simeon’s claim about Diodore’s connec¬

tion to the Macedonians is false since he too was an anti-Arian. Furthermore, any connection

between the Antiochene fathers and the Macedonians is spurious since Theodore of Mopsuestia

composed two books against the Macedonians, while Theodoret mentions composing treatises

against them {Epist. cxvi [PG 83]). Cyril of Alexandria accuses Diodore of being a Macedo¬

nian: P. E. Pusey, ‘Cyril of Alexandria, Against Diodore of Tarsus and Theodore of Mopsuestia

(fragments of book 1)’, Library of the Fathers of the Church 47 (1881): 321 n. 1.

30 Syr. ettalmad. This is a standard Syriac idiom for conversion to Christianity. It fits with

a broader tendency to understand Christianity in pedagogical terms. See Becker, Fear of God,

31-38. It is not clear whether the use of the term here is supposed to refer to Diodore converting to

Christianity. Simeon may be trying to make sense of how a heretic could have become bishop.

31 See note 27 above.

32 Lit. ‘son of our nature’. This is equivalent to the Greek homoousios hemin, ‘consub-

stantial with us’ ( Nestorian Chistological Texts, 126.7 [72.19]). This is an odd Christological

formulation for Simeon to critique since it is associated with some Miaphysite statements and

appeal's even in the Henoticon (Grillmeier and Hainthaler, Jesus der Christus, 269).

33 See note 26 above.

34 Theodore of Mopsuestia (350^128) was rapidly becoming the theological and exegetical

authority among the East Syrians in the sixth century. See the following note.

35 Syr. pashsheq is the same word used positively of Theodore in East-Syrian sources. He

is commonly referred to as the ‘interpreter’ ( mphashshqdna ). See, for example, note LA 36.

36 Syr . pushshaqe.

37 Syr. memre.

38 In the Acts of the Fifth Ecumenical Council of 553 we read: ‘As, however, the heretics

are resolved to defend Theodore of Mopsuestia and Nestorius with their impieties, and maintain

that that letter of Ibas was received by the Synod of Chalcedon, so do we exhort you to direct

your attention to the impious writings of Theodore, and especially to his Jewish Creed which

was brought forward at Ephesus and Chalcedon, and anathematized by each synod with those

who had so held or did so hold.’ Extracts from the Acts, Session I (NPNF vol. XIV, 303).

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nature, a son by grace, and a temple of the eternal Son, 39 and (he said,) ‘He
is not the son of God by nature but by grace’ , 40 along with the rest of his
blasphemies, with which all of his homilies and interpretations are filled.

[349] Theodore was succeeded by Nestorius, 41 this man who had been
ordained as presbyter in the church of the city of Antioch the Great, and
afterwards was bishop of Constantinople. (25al) He was from the city of
Germanicia. 42 He cunningly seized for himself leadership of the wicked
heresy of his masters, these men who were mentioned above, so that all
those followers of his heresy might be called by his name, like Marcion, 43
by whose name the Marcionites are called, and like Eutyches, 44 by whose
name the Eutychians are called. 45 Because of this that Nestorius, the enemy
of righteousness, openly blasphemed in the church of Constantinople.
These things which are from Simon the Sorcerer, Ebion, Artemon, Paul of
Samosata, Diodore, and Theodore, the masters of Nestorius, were secretly
passed on between them until that time. In his ostentation he took for himself
the leadership of the heresy and he entered and stood in the church before
all the people and openly blasphemed, saying: ‘Let Mary not be glorified,

39 Syr. haykla da-bra mtomaya. Cf. Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commentary on the Nicene
Creed, 200 (84). Such temple language is not uncommon in East-Syrian sources, e.g. Narsai,
Metrical Homilies, 1.115 (p. 44) and Nestorian Christological Texts, 11.22 (10.21).

40 Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commentary on the Nicene Creed, 208 (91) (which is also
quoted in the Acts of the Fifth Ecumenical Council, as Mingana notes).

41 Nestorius (d. 451) was bishop of Constantinople from 428 until he was deposed by the
Council of Ephesus in 431, after which he spent the rest of his life in exile. His actual theological
positions have been disputed by contemporary scholars, but the association of his person with
the Church of the East led to their enemies referring to them as ‘Nestorians’. By the 540s his
autobiographical self-defence, known as the Bazaar of Heracleides, was translated into Syriac,
the language in which it is extant. For the English translation, see Nestorius, The Bazaar of
Heracleides, trans. G. R. Driver and L. Hodgson (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1925). On the
reception of Nestorius into Syriac, see Abramowski, Untersuchungen zum Liber Heraclides
des Nestorius.

42 Modern (Kahraman)Marash in south-eastern Turkey. Germanic(e)ia, a city west of
Samosata, was in Syria Euphratensis and subject to the patriarchate of Antioch.

43 Marcion (d. c. 154), the founder of the dualistic form of Christianity which bore his
name, was perhaps the most common heresiological whipping boy. Marcionism continued in
Syria through the fifth century, and perhaps later.

44 Eutyches (fl. 450) is generally associated with a radical emphasis on the unitary nature
of the incarnate word. His theology as well as his person served as a focal point of dispute at
the councils of the mid-fifth century, culminating in his condemnation at Chalcedon in 451.
What his precise theological views were is unclear.

45 That heresiarchs vainly want to change the name of the Church to include their own
name appears, for example, in Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 3.28 for Cerinthus.

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30 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

because she did not give birth to God but rather a human being, created,
made, mortal, and sharing in our nature’, ‘By grace only is he worthy of
being called the son of God’, and ‘Because of his affinity with mortals Jesus
is the son of God’, 46 along with the rest of the many blasphemies (25a2) on
account of which he was anathematized in the city of Ephesus by the holy
fathers from intercourse with all the holy church of God, he and his masters,
who were mentioned above. 47 (They anathematized) their faith and everyone
who agrees with him or them. From that time to the present their name has
been called ‘Nestorians’.

[350] Theodoret of Cyrrhus 48 succeeded Nestorius. This Theodoret in
his zeal on behalf of Nestorius made a wicked statement against these holy
fathers who at Ephesus had anathematized Nestorius, his master. 49 Ibas 50
succeeded Nestorius. Along with the rest of all his blasphemies, which agree
in everything with his masters, these ones who were mentioned above, this
Ibas further blasphemed in one of his homilies 51 and spoke thus: ‘I, Ibas, do
not envy Christ who became God, since he was called God because he was
a human being like me and shared in my nature’ . 52 Because of this Ibas was
anathematized, as was Theodoret of Cyrrhus, along with their companions

46 Cf. F. Nau, ed., Jean Rufus, Plerophories, PO 8 (1912): 12.4-6. See also Grillmeier and
Hainthaler, Jesus der Christus, 270.

47 Nestorius’s position regarding the application of the title ‘Theotokos’ (‘Bearer of God’)
to Mary was condemned at the Council of Ephesus of 431.

48 Theodoret of Cyrrhus (393-^-60 [or 457/8 or 466]), was an important supporter of the
Antiochene position in the mid-fifth century and remained a controversial figure into the sixth
century. His works against Cyril of Alexandria were part of the so-called Three Chapters, those
works condemned by Justinian in 543-44 in an attempt to reach a rapprochement with the
Miaphysites. Simeon’s reference to Theodoret’s ‘wicked statement’ is part of the Miaphysite
effort to build support for this very condemnation.

49 Simeon conveniently does not mention the Council of Chalcedon in 451.

50 Syr. Hibd. Ibas of Edessa (d. 457), who served as Bishop of Edessa (435^-9 and 451-57),
was, like Theodoret, condemned at the Robber Council of 449 and exonerated at the Council
of Chalcedon. Also like Theodoret his person became a sticking point between Miaphysites
and Chalcedonians in the sixth century. On Ibas in general and the charges against him, see
Doran, Stewards of the Poor , 109-32. Also, see Price and Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of
Chalcedon, 2:265-73.

51 Syr. memre.

52 Robert Doran, Stewards of the Poor, 125-30, addresses three variants of this same saying
attributed to Ibas, as they appear in the council acts of the mid-fifth century. See also Price
and Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon, 2:266-67, esp. n. 6. However, the authors
of these volumes do not seem to be aware of this particular version, which is fuller than the
others and has probably been extended by Simeon. See Grillmeier and Hainthaler, Jesus der
Christus, 270, n. 55.

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and everyone who agrees with them. 53 Someone named Mari from Bet
Hardashir 54 succeeded Ibas. 55 From there the land of the Persians began to
be harmed (25b 1) by Nestorianism through the letters of Ibas, the interpreta¬
tions of homilies, and the commentaries of his masters. 56

The School of the Persians

[3511 After Mari, a presbyter from Edessa named Maron Elita 57 succeeded
Ibas. He was a scribe 58 of the (a) school of (the) Persians, which was in the
city of Edessa at that time. 59 There were in the school of Edessa at that time

53 This is a reference to the Second Council of Ephesus in 449.

54 It is not clear who this Mari is. His connections to the East may be in doubt. It is possible
that Simeon is confusing his career with his mere origins. See Michel van Esbroeck, ‘Who is
Mari, the Addressee of Ibas’ Letter?’, JTS 38 (1987): 129-35. Van Esbroeck concludes: ‘Mari
the Persian was archimandrite of the convent of the Akoimetoi on the Asiatic shore of the
Bosphorus 15 miles north of Constantinople’ (129). See also Becker, Fear of God, 48^4-9, 54,
57-58. Bet Hardashir is Rewardashir in Fars, on which see Fiey ‘Dioceses syriens orientaux
du Golfe Persique’, 179-94.

55 The connection between these two figures is being made based upon Ibas’s Letter to
Mari, which became one of the Three Chapters. Cf. A. d’Ales, ‘La lettre d’lbas a Mares le
Persan’, Recherches de science religieuse 22 (1952): 5-25 and Doran, Stewards of the Poor,
111. For a translation of the text of the letter, see Doran, Stewards of the Poor, 169-73 and
Price and Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon, 2:295-98.

56 Simeon may be expanding upon the tradition that the Letter to Mari was sent to the East.
We know little of Ibas’s own literary production, though he is associated with the translation of
Antiochene works from Greek into Syriac in mid-fifth-century Edessa (although the evidence
for this is thinner than scholars usually acknowledge). The ‘interpretations of homilies’
(pushshdqe d-memre) can also be ‘translations of his homilies’. Syr. turgame, rendered here as
‘commentaries’, can also mean ‘translations’.

57 On his identity and name, Assemani (n. 1) suggests that this is the Maras, presbyter
of Edessa, who participated in Ibas’s condemnation at the Council of Antioch of 448 and the
Council of Tyre-Berytus of 449, but this is unlikely since this Maras is one of those who attrib¬
uted the statement of questionable orthodoxy, quoted above (see note 52 above), to Ibas (Price
and Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon, 2:287. See also Voobus, History, 12.)

58 Syr. saphra. This is not a commonly attested office or title in the few sources we have
for the ‘School of the Persians’.

59 This is one of the few actual references to the so-called ‘School of the Persians in
Edessa’. However, it is not certain we should translate the Syriac (eskold [the final a should
be e] d-parsaye d-it [h]wa b-urhdy ) as referring to a formal institution. We find the same
ambiguity, for example, in Jacob of Sarug’s statement in Letter 14: ‘there was in the city a
school of Persians (eskole d-parsaye ) who held the teaching of the foolish Diodore with much
love’, 58.21-59.8. See Becker, Fear of God, 52.

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32 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Persians. These are some of them: 60 Acacius the Aramean, 61 who is 62 called
in that school ‘The Choker of Coins’; 63 Barsauma, 64 [352] servant of Mara
of Qardu, 65 who was called ‘The Swimmer among the Nests’; Ma‘na of Bet
Hardashir, 66 who was called ‘The Drinker of Ash’; ‘Abshota of the city of
Nineveh, 67 who is called a name which it is improper for us to write; John
of Bet Garmai, 68 who was called ‘The Suckling Pig’; Mika, 69 who is called

60 Syr. w-hawen (h)waw b-eskola d-urhay b-zabna d-parsaye d-itayhon menhon halen.
Assemani translates: ‘In ilia autem Schola commorabantur, quum Persae ibidem literis
vacarent: quos inter . . The original Syriac may suggest that Simeon did not understand all of
the members of the school to be Persian.

61 Acacius, Syr. Aqaq, Catholicos of the Church of the East (484-95/6), was from Bet
Aramaye, that region of Mesopotamia running from Seleucia-Ctesiphon south to the swamp
region (Fiey, L’Assyrie Chretienne , III.147-261). The council he called at Seleucia in 486 was
attended by three figures mentioned in the following text: John of Bet Sari in Bet Garmai, Mika
of Lashom in Bet Garmai, and Papa from Bet Lapat ( Synodicon Orientale, 59-60; in general,
see ibid. 53-60; trans. 299-307; McCullough, Short History , 132-33).

62 It is not clear how much is to be made of the absence of the perfect form of the verb ‘to
be’ (hwa) with some of the participles in the following list. If this is significant, then Simeon is
specifically stating which of the following are deceased and which still alive.

63 Although it is difficult to determine the exact meaning of each of the various sobriquets
Simeon attributes to the following figures, it is nevertheless clear that they are insulting. Further
geographical information is provided in the altered version of this list on pp. 353-54 below.

64 On Barsauma, see note LN 65. He is often criticized in West-Syrian sources.

65 On this reference and the polemical attribution of servitude to Barsauma, see Gero,
Barsauma , 26. Qardu or Bet Qardu, is the Kurdish region north and east of the Tigris and north
of Bet Zabdai (the region south of modem Siirt). See Fiey, Nisibe, 161-84; Fiey, LAssyrie
Chretienne , 1.216-17; Fiey, Pour un Oriens Christianus Novus, 120.

66 Ma‘na of Rewardashir, also mentioned below in the Cause (381, 384), was an associate
of Barsauma, but may have turned on him (Gero, Barsauma , 43 n. 96). Judging from the
number of references to him in the Synodicon Orientale and the Chronicle of Siirt, he was a
significant figure in the Church in the late fifth century. A number of original works and transla¬
tions are attributed to him in the sources. Baumstark, Geschichte, 105-06, 348. See also Fiey,
‘Dioceses syriens orientaux du Golfe Persique’, 183. As Baumstark points out (105 n. 4), he is
inaccurately identified with the Catholicos of 420 CE (e.g. Wright, History, 62-63).

67 Nothing is known of him. On Nineveh at this time, see Fiey, Pour un Oriens Christianus
Novus, 115-16, Fiey, LAssyrie Chretienne, II: 343—49, and Chase Robinson, Empire and
Elites after the Muslim Conquest: The Transformation of Northern Mesopotamia (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2000), 66-72.

68 John of Bet Sari, according to the text below. He was one of the signatories at the Council
of Bet Lapat of 484 (Fiey, LAssyrie Chretienne, III. 18-19).

69 Short for Mika’el. Below we are told that he was from Lashom in Bet Garmai (Fiey,
LAssyrie Chretienne, III.54-60; on him see 55-56).

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‘Dagon’; 70 Paul, son of Qaqay, from the town 71 which is in Khuzistan, 72 who
is called ‘The Maker of Beans’ ; 73 Abraham the Mede, 74 who was called ‘The
Heater of Baths’ ; 75 Narsai the Leprous one; 76 and Ezalya from the monastery
of Kephar Mari. 77 These ones along with the rest of their companions were
(with) one stubborn will (25b2) followers of the opinion of Ibas. 78

But there were others who did not listen to Ibas, whose names are written
here: Mar Papa 75 from Bet Lapat, 80 the city [353] of the Khuzites; Mar

70 The ancient Near Eastern God demonized by the Israelites. See, for example, David
Noel Freedman et al., The Anchor Bible Dictionary (New York: Doubleday, 1992), II: 1-2. It
is unlikely that this reference is independent of the biblical condemnation of Dagon.

71 Syr. karka. From the reference to Paul below, we can infer that this ‘town’ refers to Karka
d-Ledan, a city built by Shapur II. See J.-M. Fiey, ‘F’Elam, la premiere des metropoles eccle-
siastiques syriennes orientales (suite)', PdO I (1970): 123-30 (repr. in Communautes syria-
ques, chap. Illb). It is possible that the text is corrupt here and ‘d-Ledan’ has dropped out.

72 Syr. Bet Huzaye. On Christianity in Khuzistan in general, see J.-M. Fiey, ‘L’Elam, la
premiere des metropoles ecclesiastiques syriennes orientales’, Melto 5 (1969): 221-67 (repr.
in Communautes syriaques, chap. Ilia) and and W. Schwaigert, Das Christentum in Huzistan
im Rahmen derfriihen Kirchengeschichte Persiens bis zur Synode von Seleukeia-Ktesiphon im
Jahre 410 (PhD thesis: Marburg-Lahn, 1989).

73 Presumably this refers to a menial and thus degrading form of labour. Cf. Low,
Aramdische Pflanzennamen, no. 173.

74 On Christians in Media, see Fiey, ‘Medie Chretienne’.

75 See note 73.

76 Simeon provides less information concerning Narsai, perhaps because he assumes his
audience will know who this important figure in the Church of the East is. Narsai’s enemy in the
‘Life of Narsai’ is referred to as leprous (see note LN 103). See Gero, Barsauma, 60-61 n. 4.

77 Nothing is known of him. Kephar Mari is in Bet Zabdai, the region on the west side of
the Tigris, south and west of Cizre (Gazira ibn ‘Umar). Fiey, Nisibe , 161-79, esp. 176; Fiey,
Pour un Oriens Christianus Novus, 68-69. On Narsai’s stay at a monastery there, see p. 596
below in the ‘Life of Narsai’.

78 Syr. bnay tar‘iteh d-ihiba, lit. ‘sons of the mind of Ibas’.

79 Simeon uses the Syriac term of respect, Mar(y), for these figures who are for him
orthodox authorities.

80 Jundishapur, a city in Khuzistan, an important early centre of Christianity in Persia and
famous later for its supposed medical school. In general, see Fiey, Pour un Oriens Christianus
Novus, 83-85 as well as the material on Khuzistan in general in note 72 above. On East-
Syrian study there, see W. Schweigert, ‘Die Theologenschule von Bet Lapat - Gundaisabur.
Ein Beitrag zur nestorianischen Schulgeschichte’, Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenlandischen
Gesellschaft, Suppl. 4: XX. Deutscher Orientalistentag 1977 in Erlangen (Wiesbaden, 1980),
185-87. On the question of medical study there, see most recently G. J. Reinink, ‘Theology
and Medicine in Jundishapur: Cultural Change in the Nestorian School Tradition’, in Learned
Antiquity: Scholarship and Society in the Near-East, the Greco-Roman world, and the Early
Medieval West, ed. Alaisdair A. MacDonald, Michael W. Twomey, and Gerrit J. Reinink
(Louvain: Peeters, 2003), 163-74 and Becker, Fear of God, 94-95.

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34 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Aksenaya 81 from Tahal, which is in Bet Garmai; 82 his brother whose name
was Addai; Mar Barhadbeshabba of Qardu, 83 who was later archimandrite 84
in the monastery of Ayn Qenne; 85 and Mar Benjamin of Bet Aramaye, who
was later archimandrite in Qrita of the monastery of the school, 86 which is
under the jurisdiction of the ‘Umri, 87 and others with them did not agree
with the will of Ibas.

After the death of Ibas all the Persians were expelled 88 from Edessa
with the rest of the Edessene writers who were in agreement with them, and
through the diligence of the blessed Mar Cyrus, 89 Bishop of Edessa, and by
the commandment of Zeno, 90 the king of the Romans, the school in which
the Persians were learning in Edessa was uprooted 91 and in its place a church

81 This is the great West Syrian, Philoxenus of Mabbug (d. 523). On the relevance of this
passage to his biography, see Halleux, Philoxene de Mabbog, 12-13.

82 On this town, see Fiey, L’Assyrie Chretienne, III. 133-36.

83 On Qardu, see note 65 above. Nothing is known of this Barhadbeshabba.

84 Syr. reshdayra, lit. ‘head of the monastery’.

85 It is not clear where this is.

86 Syr. b-qrita d-dayra d-eskola [or: -e]. This phrase is unclear and the text may be corrupt,
especially since qrita could simply mean ‘village’. Furthermore, ‘monastery of the school’ is
unclear, in contrast to ‘school of the monastery’. Cf. Fiey, L’Assyrie Chretienne , III.208.

87 Assemani’s Syriac text does not differentiate between the letter dalath and resh in this
word (‘wmdyn or ‘wmryn with seyame). However, his Latin rendering (‘Umrinomm’, ‘of the
‘Umri’) implies the latter. Perhaps he understood the diacritical mark to have been subsumed
into the seyame, although in both his text and in the manuscript the seyame is not over the resh.
If the letter should be read as a resh , then see Fiey, Nisibe, 57, 227. The mim is awkwardly set
close upon the waw. If there was a confusion between these two letters in the Ms the original
reading could be ‘mwdyn. There was a site ‘Ammudin (Modern ‘Amuda in northern Syria),
not far from Dara, the Roman fortress town on the border with the Sasanians, between modern
Mardin and Nisibis (cf. Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite, Chronicle , 54). See also John bar ‘Amraye
below in the ‘Life of Narsai’ (p. 613 and note LN 170).

88 Syr. ettred(w). This term shows up in several of the sources for the closure of the School
of the Persians. Cf. Becker, Fear of God, 75.

89 Syr. Qura. Cf. Voobus, History, 32, 37, 39^-7. He also appears in the ‘Life of Narsai’
(see note LN 89).

90 The emperor Zeno (474-75, 476-91) aimed to resolve the ongoing post-Chalcedonian
Christological controversy by issuing his Henoticon (482 CE), which avoided an explicit
Christological position, while condemning Eutyches and Nestorius and approving the twelve
anathemas of Cyril of Alexandria. On the relationship of this to the closure of the School of the
Persians, see Becker, Fear of God, 44, 75. See also the positive view of Zeno in Philoxenus of
Mabbug’s Letter to Zeno in Philoxenus, Three Letters, 163-73 (trans. 118-27).

91 Syr. et‘aqrat. This term shows up in several of the sources for the closure of the School
of the Persians. See note CS 48.

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in the name of mistress Mary the Theotokos 92 was built. 93

These ones who were expelled from Edessa went down to Persia and
(26al) some of them became bishops in the cities of the Persians, that is, 94
Acacius of Bet Aramaye; Barsauma in Nisibis; Ma‘na of Bet Hartshir;
John in the town of Bet Sari, which is in Bet Garmai; Mika in Lashom,
[354] which is in Bet Garmai; Paul, son of Qaqay, in the town of Ledan
in Khuzistan; Pusai, son of Qurti, in Shushtar, the city of the Khuzites; 95
Abraham of Media; Narsai the Leprous was a teacher in Nisibis. 96

The Apostasy of the Khuzites and the Persians from the True Faith of
the Fathers

When the Khuzites and the Persians inquired into 97 ... the teachings
of Nestorius and Theodore, as he received them from Ibas, 98 they made
different assemblies in Persia, first at Bet Lapat, the metropolitan city of the
Khuzites. 99 This was in the twenty-seventh year of Peroz, King of Kings, 100

92 Syr. yaldat alaha. This is the controversial title rejected by the East Syrians and others
who thought that, when it was used alone, it compromised the human portion of the incarna¬
tion.

93 This event may be compared to the closure of the synagogue of Edessa by Rabbula (d.
435/5 CE) ( Chronicle of Edessa, 6.21-25).

94 This follows the same order as the list provided on pp. 351-52 above, but ‘Abshota and
Ezalya are missing and Pusai has been added.

95 On this city, see J.-M. Fiey, ‘L’Elam, la premiere des metropoles ecclesiastiques
syriennes orientales (suite)’, PdO I (1970): 134-40 (repr. in Communautes syriaques, chap,
mb).

96 Assemani misleadingly translates this: ‘Narses vero Leprosus Nisibi scholam instituit’.
Cf. Garsoi'an L’eglise armenienne, 454: ‘et quant a Narses de Lepreux, il etablit une ecole a
Nisibe’.

97 The idiom Syr. ba'en b- is unclear. Assemani suggests: ‘wanted to confirm’ (quum ...
confirmare vellent). The text may be corrupt since the Ms has a lacuna, suggesting that either
the scribe did not think it was correct or that the Vorlage was damaged.

98 The translation of this phrase may depend on the prior phrase, which is corrupt. Assemani
translates it as, ‘the doctrine transmitted to them by Ibas’ ( traditam sibi ab Iba). He reads the
passive participle, mqabbal, and provides the necessary diacritical mark below the word, but
the Ms has a dot above the word, suggesting it should be read as the active form: mqabbel.

99 On East-Syrian church councils, see Brock, ‘The Christology of the Church of the East
in the Synods of the Fifth to Early Seventh Centuries’. The Council of 484 called together by
Barsauma was in part to condemn the rule of the Catholicos Babowai (Synodicon Orientate, 61,
211; Braun, Das Buck der Synhados, 74-83; Gero, Barsauma, 3, 41-50; 73-88; McCullough,
Short History, 131-32).

100 Peroz I (459-84).

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36 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

and again in Seleucia and in Ctesiphon, cities of Bet Aramaye, 101 and again
in Bet ‘Edrai, the town under the jurisdiction of Bet Nuhadra. 102

The Orthodox Faith

They established canons of a new faith, different from the ones they had,
and they separated themselves from the true faith of the holy fathers, which
(26a2) they received from the Holy Apostles, which was announced through
the Holy Spirit at the city of Nicaea by the 318 bishops with Constantine,
the faithful (and) true 103 king of the Romans. 104 One hundred [355] and fifty
sacred and holy bishops, who were in Constantinople with the Emperor
Theodosius the Great, agreed (with this statement of faith), 105 (as did)
the 253 bishops in the city of Ephesus with the Emperor Theodosius the
Younger. 106 Also 495 bishops of Alexandria the Great and Antioch in Syria,
and of the Cappadocians and of the Galatians with the Emperor Zeno agreed
to it and in turn confirmed it in the book which is called the Henoticon. 101
They agreed and confirmed 108 at the time of Bishop Maruta, 109 who had been

101 The Council of Acacius in 486 and the Council of Babai in 497 CE ( Synodicon Orien¬
tate, 53-60, 62-68; Braun, Das Buck der Synhados, 59-73, 83-92; McCullough, Short History,
132-34).

102 Little is known of this council of 485 which took place in a town near Alqosh, on the
road to Nisibis. The vocalization of ‘Edrai (‘dry) is uncertain. See Gero, Barsauma, 50-51.

103 See note 22 above.

104 The Council of Nicaea of 325, which was convened by the emperor Constantine
(306-37).

105 Syr. qesar (‘Caesar’) throughout this passage is rendered as ‘Emperor’. Theodosius the
Great (379-95) called the First Council of Constantinople in 381, the second of the Ecumenical
Councils, in an attempt to reassert Nicene Orthodoxy.

106 Theodosius II (408-50) convened the Council of Ephesus of 431, the third of the
Ecumenical Councils, in order to repudiate Nestorius’s criticism of calling Mary ‘Theotokos’
(‘the bearer of God’).

107 See note 90 above. Again, it is noteworthy that Simeon does not mention the Council
of Chalcedon of 451, the decisions of which Miaphysites such as himself had been trying to
overturn for decades.

108 These words, which are plural in the manuscript, are singular in Assemani’s text, yet
he translates them as plurals. The subject is vague.

109 Maruta of Maypherqat (Martyropolis), east of Diyarbakir (Amida), d. c. 520. For the
canons agreed upon in 410, see Arthur Voobus, The Canons Ascribed to Maruta ofMaipherqat
and Related Sources (CSCO 439^10; Louvain: Peeters, 1982). In general, see Baumstark,
Geschichte, 53-55, or for a recent discussion of his career, Elizabeth Key Fowden, The
Barbarian Plain: Saint Sergius between Rome and Iran (Berkeley: University of California
Press, 1999), 52-59.

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SIMEON OF BET ARSHAM

sent on an embassy by the Emperor, king of the Romans, 110 to Yazdegird, 111
King of Kings, in the eleventh year of his reign, with 40 bishops who were
under the jurisdiction [356] of the Persians. 112 Moreover, both 33 bishops
of the land of Gurzan 113 with their own kings and leaders and 32 bishops of
Greater Armenia (26b 1) of the Persians with their own marzbans 114 recently
agreed to and confirmed these things 115 with the rest of the Orthodox bishops
and Christian kings from Constantine the faithful king to blessed Emperor
Anastasius, living of soul. 116

Anathemas against Those with Dissenting Views

Therefore all of these bishops anathematized, each in his own time, everyone
who dares to write, teach, or transmit a faith other than this one written
above, 117 which all the holy Orthodox churches in every place maintain and
believe. All the Persians maintained this until the twenty-seventh year 118 when
the bishops of the Persians transgressed the anathema of all the bishops and
kings, which were written above, and established a faith different from theirs,
one which introduces a quaternity instead of a trinity, one which confesses
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and Christ in two natures. 119

110 Arcadius, 395^408 CE.

111 Yazdegird reined from 399 to 421.

112 At the Council of Seleucia-Ctesiphon of 410 CE the Church of the East formally
accepted the canons of the Council of Nicaea.

113 One of several names for eastern Iberia (Georgia).

114 Syr. marzbane, from the Persian title meaning ‘Warden of the Marches’. This was a Sasanian
military governor of the frontier provinces. See Philippe Gignoux, ‘L’Organisation Administrative
Sasanide: le cas du marzban ', Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam 4 (1984): 1-29.

115 This is a reference to the first Council of Dvin (in Armenia) of 505/6. See, e.g., Garsoian,
L’eglise armenienne, passim. Garsoian includes her French translation of Simeon’s letter in an
appendix to her volume primarily because of this reference to the council.

116 Anastasius 491-518 CE. Assemani (356 n. 1) notes that we can derive from this refer¬
ence a relative date for the letter since Anastasius is still alive. However, the Syriac expression
hay naphsha is ambiguous since it can mean that Anastasius is still alive at the time of the
composition of the letter or it can simply refer to the soteriological condition of his post¬
mortem soul.

117 Unless he means the preceding passage, it is not clear to what Simeon refers. This may
be a reference to a portion of the document now lost, or perhaps another text to which it was
appended.

118 I.e. of the reign of the Sasanian king Peroz.

119 This refers to the Council of Bet Lapat of 484 CE, mentioned above. The Antiochene
emphasis on the duality of natures within the incarnation troubled the Miaphysites, who
emphasized the unity of natures within Christ.

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38 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Because of this we separated ourselves from the communion of the
Nestorians from the twenty-seventh year of Peroz the king until today
and we anathematized them, and we also anathematize them and Simon
the Sorcerer, their first master, (26b2) Ebion, Artemon, Paul of Samosata,
Diodore, [357] Theodore, Nestorius, Theodoret, Ibas, and all those who
have followed in their footsteps and have stood against the truth. With them
also those like them we anathematize, Mani, Marcion, Eutyches, Arius,
Apollinaris, 120 and their teaching and everyone who has thought or thinks
like them.

Again we fully anathematize anyone who has come with letter, council
(acts), homilies, 121 liturgical poetry, 122 responsa, the making of offerings, 123
the sanctification of water, 124 or the anointing of baptism, (and) dared 125 to
say that the perfect God took from us a perfect human being as a permanent
connection and habitation; 126 anyone who distinguishes and attributes divine
(properties) to God, the eternal Son, and human (properties) and passions
and death to Jesus, the human being, the son of grace, and reckons two sons,
one by nature, the other by grace; and anyone who said or says that there
are two sons with their own individual properties and operations 127 in Christ
after the true and ineffable union (27al) which truly came into being from
two natures.

[358] We also anathematize the faith and canons and anything which
came about from Acacius, Barsauma, Narsai, and his heretical companions,
and all who agreed or agrees with them. Again we anathematize Mari of

120 Apollinaris of Laodicea (c. 315-92) was an anti-Arian bishop and writer whose
emphasis on the singular nature of the ‘ Logos made flesh’ led to the condemnation of his
person and Apollinarianism in general, even by later Miaphysites, with whom his thought had
certain affinities.

121 Syr. memre.

122 Syr. madrashe are stanzaic liturgical poems.

123 I.e. the anaphora portion of the liturgy.

124 I.e. for baptism.

125 The original has an asyndeton. Furthermore, ‘has come’ (’etaw) is in the plural, but
‘they dared’ (’ amrah ) is in the singular.

126 Syr. naqqiphuta wa‘murya. Syr. naqqiphuta corresponds to Gr. sundpheia, ‘conjunc¬
tion’. The incarnation as a linking of two entities or as a form of ‘residence’ or ‘inhabitation’
( ‘murya) was a cause of anxiety for those who wanted to emphasize the unity that occurred
within it. Cf. ‘And he was united in one unity and conjunction, the temple and its inhabitant,
the taker and the taken, the perfecter and the perfected; man and God in the one inseparable
union, of one prosopon, of one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God - yesterday, today and for
ever’, Nestorian Christological Texts , 11.21-12.3 (10.20-24).

127 See note 27 above.

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SIMEON OF BET ARSHAM

Tahal, 128 the master of Babai the Catholicos, 129 since in the days of this Babai
that Mari appeared, the teacher of the heresy of the followers 130 of Paul of
Samosata and of Diodore in Bet Aramaye. Babai the Catholicos, son of
Hormizd, who was a scribe of Zabargan the marzban 131 of Bet Aramaye,
received teaching from him. Whoever does not confess that Mary is the
Theotokos 132 may he be anathematized.

128 As Assemani notes (n. 1), this is probably not the same Mari as the one mentioned above,
the addressee of Ibas’s controversial letter. Appropriate to the possible pedagogical meaning of
‘master’ (Syr. rabba ), a later source states that he was a ‘teacher’ (Syr. mallphana [in Arabic]),
and furthermore that he was excommunicated by Babai’s successor, Shila (505-521/2) ( Chron¬
icle ofSiirt 2.1.136). See also Fiey, L’Assyrie Chretienne, III. 134.

129 Catholicos Babai (497-502/3). Baumstark, Geschichte, 113; McCullough, Short
History , 133-34. This reference may be used to date the text as either at the time of or just
after the death of Babai.

130 Syr. bet, lit. ‘house of’.

131 Syr. marzbana. See note 114 above. Cf. Mar Aba’s early career as scribe before his
conversion to Christianity, Life of Aba, 210.

132 See note 92 above.

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BARHADBESHABBA,
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY

INTRODUCTION

The so-called Ecclesiastical History of Barhadbeshabba is extant in only
one manuscript, British Library Or. 6714, which Francois Nau, who edited
the text and translated it into French, dates to the ninth or tenth century. 1 It
refers to its author as ‘Mar Barhadbeshabba, presbyter and head of the inter¬
preters (badoqe) of the holy school of the city of Nisibis’. 2 The end of the
manuscript refers to him as ‘Mar Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya, presbyter and
interpreter’. 3 The title the text receives in the manuscript is: ‘The History
of the Holy Fathers who were Persecuted for the Faith’. 4 Based upon the
supposition that it is identical to the text referred to as the ‘Ecclesiastical
(History)’ in ‘Abdisho 1 bar Berika of Nisibis’s fourteenth-century poetical
bibliography of Syriac writers in the chapter on Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya,
Nau and those after him have referred to it as the Ecclesiastical History . 5

That‘Ecclesiastical’ (Syr.eqlesastiqe[’qlsstyqy] 6 fmmGi:.ekklesiastikds)
alone could be used for ‘Ecclesiastical History’ suggests that this was
understood as a specific genre. 7 For example, Isho‘denah of Basra in his
late eighth- or early ninth- century Book of Chastity uses the same Syriac
rendering of the Greek word ekklesiastikos as an abbreviated term for the
genre, when he refers to Gregory of Nisibis’s late sixth-century ‘Ecclesiastical
(History)’, which is no longer extant. 8 Already by the mid-fifth century,
Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History had been translated into Syriac. 9 As in

1 Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 494.

2 Ibid. 495.

3 Ibid. 631.

4 Syr. tash ‘itd d-abahata qaddishe d-etrdeph(w) mettul shrara

5 Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.169.

6 More commonly eqlesyastiqe (’qlsystyqy).

7 Brock, ‘Syriac Historical Writing’, 21-22.

8 Isho‘denah, Le Livre de la Chastete, ed. and trans. J.-B. Chabot (Rome, 1896) (also in
Melanges d’archeologie et d’histoire 16 [Paris, 1896]: 225-91), # 56.

9 The older of the two manuscripts of the Ecclesiastical History is dated to 462/3 CE (St.

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BARHADBESHABBA, ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY

Greek Patristic and other Christian literatures, it had a guiding influence on
Syriac historiography.

Because only the last two chapters of the Ecclesiastical History have
been translated in this volume, the structure and content of the text as a
whole should be addressed at least briefly here. This will provide a literary
context for Chapters 31 (‘Life of Narsai’) and 32 (‘Life of Abraham of Bet
Rabban’) and clarify the broader tendencies of a text of which these two
chapters are only a small portion. The Ecclesiastical History begins with a
preface, 10 which I reproduce in full since its programmatic nature reveals the
author’s explicit aims in composition.

Although I have been hindered by many things from attempting to gather together
the stories 11 of the holy fathers and from demonstrating the ways of their slanderers
- (that is,) first (by) ignorance, second youth, and third lack of training, and, more
than all these, the evil times which continually trouble the mind and deprive and
remove it from learning; nevertheless, affection and love for the way of life 12 of
the fathers have overcome all these things. Because of this I have approached this
account . 13 For since few are those who come upon the many long accounts by
which the glory of the holy ones is known, I myself have endeavoured therefore
(to set down) not only chapters but also if there is a speech in the accounts of
others, by which the prosperous diligence of the fathers is known, I endeavour
to set it here that from this they may be a mirror for others, who may glance at
them and emulate their excellence. Like statues and images of kings which are
adorned with choice materials and pigments, in this way also we ourselves paint
an image of their deeds, by which a prototype of their excellence is known. Just
as wayfarers first investigate marks and signposts and then begin their journey,
thus it is right also for us first to briefly trace out the chapter headings through
which our speech will run, so that when whoever is reading comes upon them
they will learn the whole purpose 14 of the story . 15

Petersburg Codex). See the edition of Wright and McLean in the bibliography. The manuscript
of Eusebius’s On the Theophania dates to 411 (British Library Add. 12150). Neither of these
are autographs.

10 The Syriac word for ‘preface’ used here is mappaq b-ruha, which can also mean
‘apology’. It in fact shows up regularly in the Ecclesiastical History with the latter meaning,
cf. Riad, Studies in the Syriac Preface, 111.

11 Syr. tash'yata, or ‘histories’.

12 Syr. dubbdrayhon, or ‘their deeds’.

13 Syr. maktbanuta.

14 Syr. nisha often serves as the Syriac equivalent of Gr. skopos. See Riad, Studies in the
Syriac Preface, 58-59.

15 Barhadbeshabba, La secondpartie de I’histoire ecclesiastique, 496-97. On the various
parts of the Syriac preface, see Riad, Studies in the Syriac Preface, 179-231; on the modesty
expressed here, see ibid. 197-202, esp. 200.

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42 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

As the author states, a chapter summary is provided after the preface. This is

reproduced below because it gives a sense of the work’s main themes and, as

it seems to have been composed by the author himself, is especially useful

for seeing how the text coheres as a whole.

I. [497.3] The first chapter, in which it is right for us to let it be known
how Satan was able from the very beginning to oppose the Church
and what were the tricks that he taught the errant ones. 16

II. What were the heresies that he tore out from the church and what
is the opinion of each one of them and which ones have corrupted
the scriptures and which ones have not.

III. On Arius the heretic and from what opinion he came to this error.
Concerning the great liberty which Alexander and his compan¬
ions possessed against him. What was the cause of the council (of
Nicaea).

IV. The letter of the king who ordered that they come to the council at
Nicaea in Bithynia.

V. The apology of Simeon bar Sabba‘e. How many bishops gathered
together. Concerning the liberty which the true ones possessed.

VI. The matters that the council addressed when it came together. What
evils they did and did not endure from the Arians.

VII. Concerning the plan which Arius wanted to enact against the Church
after he was first anathematized. What punishment he received
from God through the prayer of Alexander of Constantinople.

VIII. [498] The story of the way of life of the holy ones, Eustathius
and Meletius, bishops of Antioch. What were the evils which they
endured from Eusebius and those who shared his opinion, wicked
Arians.

IX. The story of the friend of God, Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria.
How many evils he endured from the Arians.

X. What evils George the Arian made the faithful in Alexandria
endure. On the form of his death.

XI. Concerning the wicked Eudoxius the Arian. Concerning the evils
he made the faithful endure.

XII. The story of the way of life of Gregory the wonder worker, bishop
of Neocaesarea.

XIII. Concerning Aetius the wicked. Concerning the evil of his mind.

XIV. Concerning Eunomius the Arian. Concerning his teaching.

16 Lit. ‘sons of error’.

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BARHADBESHABBA, ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 43

XV.

XVI.

XVII.

The story of the holy Basil, bishop of Caesarea.

The story of the way of life of Flavian, bishop of Antioch

The story of the way of life of the glorious Diodore, bishop of
Tarsus. Concerning his perseverance in the truth.

XVIII.

The story of the way of life of John, bishop of Constantinople.
Whence he came. Concerning his perseverance in the fear of God.

XIX.

[499] The story of the way of life of the holy Theodore, bishop of
Mopsuestia. What praiseworthy things he did in his episcopacy.

XX.

The story of the friend of God, Mar Nestorius, bishop of Constan¬
tinople. Whence he came. From whom he received his learning
of scripture. What praiseworthy thing the zealous one did in his

XXI.

episcopacy.

Apology against the reproofs of the wicked Cyril, from which the
glorious deeds of the holy Nestorius and the excellence of his way
of life will be known.

XXII.

XXIII.

From what causes did a dispute arise between Cyril and Nestorius.
What was done at Ephesus by Cyril and those with him before the
arrival of (the bishop of) Antioch.

XXIV.

What was done against the rash boldness of Cyril and Memnon of
Ephesus after the arrival of John.

XXV.

What that person who had been sent by the king did after his
arrival.

XXVI.

Not only did the see of Alexandria attack Nestorius but also the

bishops who preceded him.

XXVII. What are the things that were done afterwards by that (bishop) of
Antioch. What was the cause of his desertion of the truth.

XXVIII. A portion from a letter of the council which was written to the king

XXIX.

on account of the slander of Nestorius.

What zeal the council of the East demonstrated against the frenzy
of Cyril, when he sent those who were with Maximinus that they
might compel them to anathematize those who were with Diodore
and Theodore. What they wrote to Proclus and the king.

XXX.

What the Egyptian wanted to do against Nestorius, even in his
exile. What glorious deeds that holy one performed in his exile.

XXXI.

The story of the way of life of Mar Narsai, the presbyter and
teacher.

XXXII. The story of the glorious deeds of Mar Abraham, the presbyter and
teacher. 17

17 Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 497-99.

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44 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

The author begins the first chapter by inquiring into the ‘cause’ (Syr. ‘ ellta )
of the slander that is cast upon the fathers and teachers of the Church. In the
beginning the Apostles, after receiving the grace of the Holy Spirit, made
disciples among the nations. 18 They preached in the name of the Trinity but
did not concern themselves with ‘exactitude and the propounding of laws’. 19
The weakness of their ‘students’ 20 did not allow them to grapple with the
exact truth. At the same time, Satan grew disturbed by the rapid growth
of the Church, a development that was diminishing his own kingdom. In
response, he incited pagan priests and diviners to attack the Church, but this
was to no avail.

What follows is one of the more bizarre passages in the Ecclesiastical
History} 1 In what is clearly a conflation of several traditions, including a
confusion between Helen the mother of Constantine and Helen of Troy, the
text describes how Satan’s assault upon the Church was put to a stop by
Helen, a woman from Mesopotamia who exceeded all women in beauty.
This woman was converted to Christianity by Barsamya, bishop of Edessa,
and was then well-trained in the reading of scripture. 22 Valentinian, an
imperial steward, eventually comes to see the woman of fabled beauty,
wanting to legally wed her. When he becomes emperor, Helen shows full
support for the Church. At this Satan realizes that he has failed and there¬
fore develops a new form of attack: ‘he cast schisms and divisions and
he made commotions and dissensions by the mass of heresies he intro¬
duced into the Church’. 23 By this means he causes many to fall and chaos
descends upon the Church.

The second chapter then describes 14 different heresies. This list, which
seems to be taken as a whole from one of the author’s sources, depicts the
heresies that existed prior to the fourth century. 24 The chapter concludes with

18 Syr. ntalmdun (Barhadbeshabba, La premiere partie de I’histoire, 182.8).

19 Ibid. 182.10.

20 Syr. yalophe , ibid. 182.11.

21 Ibid. 184.6-185.2.

22 Note the connection between the Martyrdom of Barsamya and Sharbel and the Doctrina
Addai, which contains the story of Protonike’s discovery of the cross (instead of Helen). See,
e.g., Jan Willem Drijvers, ‘The Protonike Legend, The Doctrina Addai and Bishop Rabbula of
Edessa’, Vigiliae Christianae 51 (1997): 298-315.

23 Barhadbeshabba, La premiere partie de I’histoire, 185.4-5.

24 ‘Sabbatians, Simonists, Marcionites, Borborites, Daisanites, Manichaeans, Paul of
Samosata, Audians, Quqites, Montanists, Timotheans, “The Pure”, Arimanites, Cyrilians or
Severians’ (ibid. 186-99). Of course the latter two are named after much later figures, but
according to the author can be traced back to an earlier period. Nau notes at 186 n. 2 that this
chapter appears elsewhere extant in Arabic.

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BARHADBESHABBA, ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY

a statement which may be understood as programmatic for the Ecclesias¬
tical History as a whole.

All these heresies and the many others cover over the Holy Church like dark
clouds - by the holy men their deceit has been revealed and their gloominess
dissipated. For their stings are bitter. By means of questions and responses they
have been destroyed. It is not the time for us to recount the cause of every single
one of them, both when and in what manner each took its origin, or who were
their sources, lest we be detained from what has been set for us (or: by us) to
accomplish. But this one thing it is necessary to add: although all these errant
ones were students to Satan, that one who continually works eagerly within the
sons of disobedience, 15 nevertheless more (trouble) than all of these is in these
two groups -1 am able to demonstrate his power in the Holy Church - the one of
the Arians and Eunomians, the other of the Cyrilians and Severans. Because of
this also let us turn our speech against the two of them, first against the Arians,
(inquiring into) both who is their heresiarch and whence he came to this error,
and then against these others. 26

After this point, the Ecclesiastical History commences its more detailed
history of events from the early fourth century onwards, addressing the
fourth-century ‘heresies’, starting with that of Arius.

As is apparent from the table of contents presented above, several
chapters of the Ecclesiastical History, including the two translated here,
consist of self-contained biographies. The style of these individual units
relies on Christian hagiography and many of the tropes of this genre -
ultimately deriving from parallels with the life of Jesus Christ on earth - are
apparent. For example, the holy men described by the text are often preco¬
cious from a young age, excelling their peers in virtue and talent. Despite
the numerous enemies who attempt to obstruct them, they are ultimately
successful and die enjoying recognition of their greatness. This hagiograph-
ical tone suggests that we should be especially hesitant to attribute historical
value to the claims made by the text.

Furthermore, in the broader body of the work the sources of the Ecclesi¬
astical History are often readily apparent. Nau notes among these Socrates
Scholasticus’s Ecclesiastical History, the Bazaar of Heracleides of Nesto-
rius, and documents relating to the Council of Ephesus. 27 The text’s utter
dependence at times on clearly identifiable sources for the fourth and fifth
centuries suggests that the East Syrians knew little of the ecclesiastical

25 Eph 2:2.

26 Barhadbeshabba, La premiere partie de Vhistoire , 197.11-199.2.

27 Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 500-01.

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46 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

events of the past except for what they learned from books deriving from the
West. There is a change in tone and source material in the last two chapters,
the two lives of Narsai and Abraham of Bet Rabban, translated here. These
two men were the heads of the School of Nisibis and the author would have
had much closer contact with their writings as well as texts written by their
contemporaries and could possibly have known Abraham of Bet Rabban
himself.

The following is a schematic outline of each of the two chapters trans¬
lated here:

Chapter 31 (‘Life of Narsai’) Pages in the Nau Edition

Preface 588-90

Origins, childhood, early contemplative knowledge 590-94

The youth Narsai’s leadership in time of persecution 594-96

Residence at Kephar Mari in Bet Zabdai 596

First arrival in Edessa 596-97

On Barsauma of Nisibis 597-98

Rabbula, first Head of the School; Narsai takes over the School 598-99
Narsai is slandered and attempts to convert him fail 599-602

Narsai’s public accusation and flight 602-05

Narsai arrives at Nisibis 605-06

Barsauma persuades Narsai to settle in Nisibis 606-08

Satan’s assault on Narsai in Nisibis 608-11

Narsai’s scholastic asceticism 611

The heretical Jacob of Sarug inspires Narsai to write 612

Criticism of and trouble with the Persian authorities 612-13

Narsai is slandered again 614

The miraculous healing of a boy harassed by a demon 614-15

Conclusion 615

Chapter 32 (‘Life of Abraham of Bet Rabban ’)

Early life and training under Narsai 616-17

Abraham’s learning appropriate to what is required in the body 617-20
Abraham’s ascetic way of life and the awe he inspired in many 620-21
His work at the School and in teaching 622-24

Enemy brothers accuse him 624—26

The wicked Jews attack Abraham 626-27

Abraham’s sturdiness and defence of the Doctors of the Church 627-30
Conclusion 630-31

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BARHADBESHABBA, ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY

LIFE OF NARSAI: TRANSLATION AND NOTES

Chapter 31. The story of that one who has passed to the house of the holy
ones, 1 the blessed Mar Narsai, whence he came and what sort was his
teaching. 2

Preface

[588] Since we have reached this point with the help of God we should not
pass by as something extraneous 3 the story of the virtue of our own Persian
fathers; I am speaking of Mar Narsai and Mar Abraham, the blessed ones.
For although we are not capable of plaiting crowns for their way of life 4 nor
of weaving a coat full of the beauties of their virtues, nevertheless, although
in prosaic speech, let us make remembrance of their glorious deeds among
their companions, lest we be found to be ones who reject their glittering
beauties. 5 We first will tell the story of the way of life of that one who has
passed to the house of the holy ones, Mar Narsai. We will then include 6
that of Mar Abraham, his student. For there is a custom among men that
whenever those dear to them or those who reared them pass away, because
of the eager longing of love for them and the remembrance of their beauties,
by means of choice pigments or with materials glittering [589] with beauty,
they paint an image of their loved ones and possess them as likenesses which

1 The ‘house’ or ‘place of the holy ones’ (Syr. bet qaddishe) can be the physical structure
or locus where the remains of holy men are kept. This then may suggest that there was such a
sacred building or location at the School of Nisibis dedicated to the fathers of the School who
had passed away.

2 Some of the information provided by this text can be found in an abbreviated form in the
later Chronicle ofSiirt 2.1.115-17, 136—37.

3 The Syr. barrdyta is Nau’s emendation for bsh‘t \

4 The Syr. dubbare, which can commonly mean ‘custom’ or ‘manner’, often has a technical
meaning of ‘discipline’ or ‘ascetic practice’ and even serves as the opposite of ‘theory’ in the
philosophical and monastic dichotomy of theory/practice. On this whole phrase, see Riad,
Studies in the Syriac Preface , 209.

5 It is a commonplace to preface works of praise with comparisons to the different plastic
arts. The author also apologizes that his work is not in poetry, but is rather ‘in prosaic speech’
( b-mellta shhimta). This is in part rhetorical convention, but there are a number of examples
of praise in Syriac poetry from the late fourth century onwards (e.g. the madrashe of Balai on
Acacius, bishop of Beroea in S. Ephraemi siri, Rabbulae episcopi Edesseni, Balaei aliorumque
opera selecta, ed. Julian Joseph Overbeck [Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1865], 259-69). On the
author speaking about his own work in general in the preface, see Riad, Studies in the Syriac
Preface , 218-30, esp. 221 and 230.

6 There is a metathesis of mpqynn for mqpynn. This may be in the manuscript, but since it
is not noted by Nau it is more likely a mistake in the printed edition of the text.

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according to the shape of their features are akin to them. 7 By the similarity
of the resemblance to them, the grief of those who love them is soothed and
the seething of their minds is cooled from thoughts about them. Thus let us
also, in place of dead images and silent likenesses, adorn our tongue and
sanctify our lips so that by our speech we can paint upon the minds of the
lovers of truth a praiseworthy image of the way of life of the glorious one,
and as a polished likeness of beauty let us plait a crown of his beauties so
that, after the discerning power of the sense of hearing contemplates it and
presses the harmony of its loftiness within its mind, 8 it (i.e. the crown) may
be a peaceful haven for the earnest desire of love for him. For if we were to
paint a fixed image, it would doubtless be easier for us to do this, because
the vision of the eyes serves the natural constitution of his likeness and
the harmony of his features. With craftsmanship it is easy for someone to
take the different particulars of the subject in his mind, and he draws them
first with simple lines. 9 Then he adorns them with pigments that are able to
demonstrate certain similarities to his likeness. 10 But we paint not an image
which is visible nor do we draw a fixed likeness, but rather a simple image
which is not visible and a likeness [590] which transcends the senses of
the body. This intellectual commander of the army is searched out with the
knowledge of the soul and is grasped with the eyes of the mind. In addition
to this, it is not easy for us to contemplate the virtue of the diligent ones
due to the heaviness of the body. 11 But love for the holy one goes beyond all

7 The author now switches his approach by suggesting that he will, in fact, produce
beautiful plastic arts in honour of his subject. However, this will be through words which form
representations in the mind. Although it derives from Classical rhetorical practice, the analogy
between writing and painting images became a commonplace in Syriac literature, especially
in the prologue to Syriac texts. The analogy to images of the dead may reflect local practice,
similar to the mosaic and sculptural images of the dead we find in Edessa and Palmyra respec¬
tively, but this analogy may here also derive from Classical practice as mediated through Greek
texts. The metaphorical use of painting and image making also follows the logic of the Greek
psychology and epistemology that had come into the School of Nisibis by this time: knowledge
was understood as representative. See note CS 142.

8 The preceding line is difficult. I have not followed the manuscript which vocalizes tb ‘ as
the perfect form, tba‘. Instead I take it as a participle, tabci‘, translated as ‘presses’, so that it
can be parallel with the participle, mased (‘contemplates’).

9 The ‘simple lines’ could also be rendered as ‘dark lines’. In either case this phrase seems
to refer to the practice of drawing an outline sketch before the colour is added to a painting.

10 Lit. ‘certain likenesses of his likeness’.

11 This reflects the physiological understanding which lies behind much late antique ascetic
discourse. The purpose of ascetic practice was to lighten and dry out the body, making it less of
a hindrance to the soul, which it regularly led astray. Cf. Shaw, The Burden of the Flesh.

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these things and kindles our mind that we might repeat some of his glorious
deeds, even if only a few.

Origins, Childhood, Early Contemplative Knowledge

Now this man of God was from the land of M‘alta and the name of his town
was ‘Ayn Dulba. 12 From the time of his youth his thought stirred him to be
grown with the irrigation of the divine scriptures. Although in the time of
youth the orders of rationality are mixed up, as the saying of the wise one
who said: Youth and ignorance are vanity', 13 the child believes every word 14
because of the desire of the body and the heat of its temperature; 15 nonethe¬
less this holy one immediately let it be known what would come from him
once he reached full stature, and just as a praiseworthy plant, when from the
beginning of its growth it hastens to bring forth lovely shoots, while in this
through its prior abundance it hints at another change to the workers who
tend to it, thus also this holy one did, since in the time when the thought of
many is moved by youthful onrushes to stray after empty things by which
youth is enticed to transgress [591] the paths of the vineyard, he, however,
departed immediately from all the fierce onrushes of weak childhood, while
he distanced himself from delicate ornaments and from desirable entice¬
ments as well as all earthly distraction. He was continually going about
wholly in the sphere of virtue, as the blessed Timothy. 16 For he had along
with the possession of virtue also care for the divine teaching, according to
the word of the psalmist: While he was continually meditating upon the law
of the Lord 11 and like that one who was saying this with the blessed David:

12 Modern Deleb, Fiey, Assyrie Chretienne 11.685-86 (see map on p. 704). ‘The source/
spring of plane trees’; the Chronicle ofSiirt gives the same location (2.2.114). Ma‘alta (Fiey,
Assyrie Chretienne 11.675-81, also see 1.213-15), referred to as the region of the village, is now
a separate town. Both are north-west of Dohuk in Iraqi Kurdistan.

13 Eccl 11:10(12:1).

14 Prov 14:15.

15 The author here medicalizes the traditional proverbial wisdom of scripture. The ‘heat of
its temperature’ ( hammimuta d-muzzagah ) derives from Greek medical science. Greek physi¬
ology was integrated into the Christian ascetic notion of the body, e.g., Shaw, The Burden of
the Flesh , 79-128.

16 The source of this striking expression, ‘sphere of virtue’ (Syr. gigld da-myattruta), is
unclear.

17 Ps 1:2. The use of this quotation and the following one is typical of the East Syrians’
positive emphasis on God’s law, in contrast to the more common denigration of the law found in
both East-Syrian and other Christian literature, particularly as part of an anti-Jewish rhetorical
strategy.

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How I loved your law and all the day it is the object of my reflection . 18

After these (characteristics), modesty came in the likeness of a praise¬
worthy icon, which is akin to the true prototype. 19 After he joined himself
to the hard yoke of fasting from the very beginning, he possessed for some
time chastity, pleasantness, and humility, through the spurning of desires,
while he continually worked in the spiritual field. Because in everything he
understood and in the manner of a student received (the lesson) 20 that the
things which are in the flesh are unable to please God, since the mind which
is in the flesh is an enmity unto God, but the mind of the spirit gives life and
peace; 21 on account of this he disregarded all the objects of desire and he took
care to complete the free will of his [592] intellectual soul. 22 Because our
soul is adorned in this temporal life with two faculties, that is, by intellectual
thought and the passive portion, 23 and by that former portion contemplative
knowledge rushes to do whatever it has the capacity naturally to receive in
its exaltedness, 24 by this second passive portion it gives birth to two other
faculties whose nature is to be moved passively. 25 Sometimes it uses them

18 Ps 119:97.

19 The terms ‘icon’ (Syr. from yuqna, from Gr. eikon ) and ‘prototype’ (Syr. tape(n)ka,
of Persian origin) appear also in the Cause , and reflect the basic Platonic concept of mimesis
employed within the text. Here Narsai’s modesty is an ‘image’ or ‘icon’ of the ‘prototype’, that
is, the ideal modesty, which like all virtues belongs to God.

20 This seems to be a technical usage of the word. The Syriac qabbel usually takes an
explicit, or at least implicit, direct object.

21 This distinction between the two types of mind derives from Rom 8:5-8. However, as
in other passages the physical body’s hindrance in spiritual matters is emphasized in a manner
which reflects the Greek medical body.

22 The ‘intellectual soul’ (Syr. naphsha yaddu‘tanita) refers to that portion of the soul
characterized as rational and active by both the Neoplatonists and Evagrius of Pontus. Such
a distinction was made because the soul was understood also to have a simple vegetative and
passive portion.

23 The ‘passive portion’ (Syr. mnata hashoshtana ) of the soul. Greek words derived
from the verb paschein (‘to suffer’) are expressed in Syriac often with the root h-sh-sh, e.g.
hashoshta (‘passive’) and hashoshd’it (‘passively’) in the following passage. The Syr. mnata
is Nau’s emendation for the manuscript’s mellta (‘word’).

24 This is an awkward, difficult clause. The phrase ‘contemplative knowledge’ (lit. ‘knowl¬
edge of contemplation’; Syr. ida‘ta d-ta’awriya, from Gr. thedna) refers to the knowledge
acquired in Evagrian contemplation. On thedria in Syriac, see, for example. Brock, ‘Some Uses
of the Term Theoria in the Writings of Isaac of Nineveh’.

25 As in the Cause, we find here a psychology that divides the soul into active and passive
portions. This distinction, which is originally Aristotelian, was mediated to the Church of the
East through both the Neoplatonism of the Evagrian corpus and the Aristotelianism of the later
Neoplatonic commentators on Aristotle.

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in an ordered manner 26 and sometimes outside of the truth according to the
governance of its freewill. He took care to change his steps according to its
first cause, 27 because, whenever it uses them immoderately and wickedly
like a wild animal, it falls completely from the rank of its nature. 28 Whenever
it is empowered to work with these things justly and prudently according
to the truth of its freewill, it goes beyond everything which is in opposi¬
tion to (its) constitution 29 and the fleshly tumult, while cooling off with its
pure luminous clarity 30 the whole flame kindled by objects of desire 31 and
overcoming with intellectual power all the evil troops of pride, anger, and
canine impudence, as the divine Paul outlines: Now therefore I am in my
mind a slave of the law of God. I am in my flesh a slave of the law of sin.
There is nothing which I want that I do. But evil, which I hate [593], that is
what I do, 32 by this making known that some things are of the body, others
are of the soul. The one, because of the opposition of its constitution and the
necessity and longing of its need, is continually attracted to what is opposed
to it. The other, because of its subtlety and the simplicity of its substance, 33
is liberated from this necessity 34 of the body and continually meditates with
its subtle intellect that it might perform the things which that essence, rich
in blessings, 35 takes pleasure in, while distributing equally with righteous¬
ness and justice and dividing the movements of these things for whatever
serves for its ascent. From this it is known that all practice and the life of

26 Or ‘in a proper manner’, lit. ‘according to (its) order’ or ‘according to (its) rank’ (Syr.
taksis, from Gr. taxis). This may not be simply an idiomatic phrase, but rather a specific refer¬
ence to the ‘rank’ that each species has in creation. See note CS 56 regarding a similar usage.

27 I.e. the soul’s first cause or origin (Syr. ‘elltah qadmayta).

28 Lit. ‘from all the rank of its nature’. Again, the word here derives from Greek taxis and
may be translated variously.

29 Syr. saqublayuta d-muzzagd. As elsewhere in this portion of the text, the language is
clearly Evagrian in origin. Cf. Evagrius of Pontus, Kephalaia Gnostica, 1.2 (pp. 16-17).

30 Syr. shaphyutah dkita. Syr. shaphyuta , translated here as ‘luminous clarity’, comes from
a root meaning ‘limpid’ or ‘clear’, but is commonly used with a specialized meaning in Syriac
spiritual literature for the clarity one finds in a higher experiential state. It is the source for the
title of Sebastian Brock’s book on Ephrem, The Luminous Eye: The Spiritual World Vision of
St. Ephrem. See pp. 71-79 therein for a discussion of the term.

31 Lit. ‘flame of combustion of objects of desire’.

32 Rom 7:15.

33 ‘Sublety’ ( qattinuta ) and ‘simplicity’ (pshituta ) are attributes of the immaterial, spiritual
realm. Non-material entities do not have parts and are therefore simple (cf. Gr. haplous). See
note CS 63.

34 Syr. ananqe, from Gr. andnke

35 Syr. marat tube , lit. ‘mistress of good things’. This expression is also used for the divine
essence in the Cause, for example, on p. 335 and p. 379.

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52 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

performing the commandments polish 36 the passive portion of the soul, that
is, the movements and the two faculties of anger and desire, 37 while hindering
them from being moved by these things to go out from whatever limits for us
the necessities of life in the world. The practice of divine contemplation, 38
the other portion of the soul, which is foremost and exalted, is entrusted
with the straining - I refer to the intellectual thought and the discerning
mind. 39 For they also often give movements which are contrary to nature, not
only effective and active ones, but also true and knowing ones. Whenever it
abandons [594] the true knowledge of natures 40 and is led by compulsion,
as if by an onrush, towards the desire belonging to mendacious error, it too
goes in a crooked path and is moved by the ambushing onrush to incline
towards that which is the opposite of discernment.

Because this holy one knew that true contemplation of the spirit 41 draws
and raises up (the mind) from this depth of error and from the chasm of
falsehood to the height of truth, while it alone can purify it from all the filth
of deceit; on account of this he disregarded all the objects of bodily desire
typical of youth and began to increase the pure faculties of his soul with the
spiritual milk of the fear of God, according to the life of contemplation, as
the Lord’s word instructs us: Seek for yourselves first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you? 1 because
the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom? according to the prophetic

36 Note the prior tradition of using the language of purification, cleansing, and polishing
to address the relation to self and soul in Ephrem, e.g., Edmund Beck, Des Heiligen Ephraem
des Syrers Hymnen de Ieiunio (CSCO 246; Louvain: Secretariat du CorpusSCO, 1964), 1-5
(Hymn 1). This prior tradition is rendered here in Greek philosophical terms.

37 ‘Anger’ (Syr. hemta) and ‘desire’ (Syr. regta) are equivalent to the thumos and the
epithumia of Platonic psychology. These two ‘faculties’ (Syr. hayle, Gr. dunameis), along with
their various ‘movements’ (Syr. zaw ‘e, Gr. kineseis ), make up the passive portion of the soul.

38 Syr. ta’dwriya, from Gr. theoria. ‘Divine theoria ... seems to be not of Evagrian, but of
Dionysian origin, though it also occurs in the Syriac translation of the Lausiac History’ (Brock,
‘Some Uses of the Term Theoria in the Writings of Isaac of Nineveh’, 412).

39 The metaphor of ‘straining’ and ‘purification’ appears also in the Cause (see notes CS
129 and CS 130). Again, we have a combination of Evagrian and later Neoplatonic psychology.
For a discussion addressing thumos and epithumia , that is, the passive portions of the soul, and
the purification of the soul, see, e.g., Philoponus, In deAnima, 18.8-19.

40 This reading removes the awkward seyame (pluralizing diacritical mark) from the word
‘true’.

41 This is an Evagrian expression. For example, see Isaac of Nineveh, Second Part, 23 n.
5 (versio).

42 Mt 6:33. Note the use of this verse by Evagrius (Sinkewicz, Evagrius ofPontus, 6, 196)
and Isaac of Nineveh {Second Part, 68 [78-79] [14.37])

43 Ps 111:10.

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word. Also this holy one when he was seven years old went to the school 44
for youths, and from the fervour of his love and the speedy movements 45 of
his soul, in nine months’ time he memorized the whole Psalter. 46

The Youth Narsai’s Leadership in Time of Persecution

But after a short time by Satan’s instigation paganism was put into motion
against the truth. 47 [595] The Magi, the wise men of Persia, heard about this
school and they came (to see) if it was possible for them either to make the
youths deny what is true or to remove them from their prior opinion. The
teacher at that time, strengthened by the grace of the spirit, led the school
away and went and hid on a mountain, like those holy ones from the time
of Elijah, 48 and they did not fear the sword. These true ones were neither
hindered nor overwhelmed by the torments, but they were there until the
gloom of the persecutors passed. During this whole storm Mar Narsai was
encouraging his peers 49 to learn and take care for the fear of God, as the
blessed Daniel (did) his companions, in that at that time he was saying:
Love for your law is greater than gold and greater than precious stones, 50
and sometimes, Your words are sweet to my palate more than honey to the
mouth 51 and at other times. Do not fear those who kill the body. They are
unable to kill the soul. Fear rather whoever is able to destroy the soul and

44 Syr. eskole, from Gr. schole.

45 Those with a quick intellect are described as having ‘speedy movements’ in their mind
or soul. Cf. the description of the angels on p. 349 of the Cause.

46 Lit. ‘he repeated David’. The Syriac verb ‘repeat’ ( tna ) can have a similar meaning as
the cognate Rabbinic term, which is also used in pedagogical contexts. The Psalter, which was
the text studied for elementary literacy in part because of its liturgical significance, is regularly
referred to as simply ‘David’ after its pseudonymous author.

47 It is reasonable to question the authenticity of the following account. Furthermore, the
persecution does not help to date Narsai’s youth, since there were a number of outbreaks of
persecution in the fifth century, under Yazdegird I (399^120), Bahram V (421-39), Yazdegird
II (439-57), and Peroz (459-84). Even if Narsai’s youth was affected by persecution, the story
of the ‘school for youths’ being taken into the wilderness and the child Narsai consoling and
encouraging them in their exile seems far-fetched. Furthermore, how would the author of this
text have known about these events?

48 1 Kgs 19:1-18 describes Elijah’s flight to Mt Horeb.

49 Dan 1:10 lit. ‘sons of his tooth’.

50 Ps 19:10 (11). Theodoret, Commentary on the Psalms, Psalms 1-72 (trans. Robert
C. Hill; Washington, DC: Catholic University Press, 2000), 133-38 (PG 80.898-1000) on
Psalm 19 addresses the positive understanding of the law typical of Antiochene theology and
exegesis.

51 Ps 119:103.

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54 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

the body in Gehenna, 52 according to the word of the Lord. The holy one was
in this school for a period of nine years. He even exceeded his master in
instruction. For who would not wonder at this successful athlete and second
Daniel, [596] who despised all objects of desire! For the threats of the judge
did not frighten him, nor again did worldly incentives lead him astray from
his love of Jesus.

Residence at Kephar Mari in Bet Zabdai

Later after he was bereft of his upbringing since his parents had left this
world early, he heard about the brother of his father whose name was
Emmanuel, 53 who was the head of a monastery in the region of Bet Zabdai
in the monastery called Kephar Mari. 54 They say that he came to that place
after he was instructed at the School of Edessa. 55 He made the monastery
abound with a great assembly of brothers and he created a school there. 56
Because of his training and the sturdiness of his ways and his care for the
truth, he was made a priest 57 of all the countryside and finally was commis¬
sioned to lead the church of Amida. 58 He arose and came to him, and after
Emmanuel found and recognized him and also learned from testing him
that he was more illuminated in learning than the teachers and brothers who

52 Mt 10:28.

53 Nothing else is known of Emmanuel. However, the course of his career demonstrates
the porousness of the boundaries between Rome and Persia. Presumably, like Narsai, he came
from Persia, but then went to Edessa, returned to Persia to the monastery of Kephar Mari, and
finally died as bishop of Diyarbakir, again in Roman territory.

54 See note SL 77. Simeon includes an Ezalya from the monastery of Kephar Mari in his
list of members of the School of the Persians in Edessa ( Epistle 352).

55 Nau here translates eskole with a seyame (pluralizing diacritical mark) as a plural, but
ignores the seyame elsewhere in the manuscript. It is more likely that all instances are simply
cases where it is used to express the long e (e) sound at the end of a singular word.

56 This may be an anachronism, since it resembles the standard practice of the mid-sixth
century onwards as it is represented by other sources (see Becker, Fear of God, 161-62).

57 Syr. peryadewtd from the Gr. periodeutes. This is a priest who serves as the bishop’s
representative in the countryside, visiting villages and monasteries.

58 Amed/Amid/Amida is modem Diyarbakir, which sits on the left bank of the upper Tigris
and is today a major city in south-eastern Turkey. Much of the Christian community of Nisibis
moved to Diyarbakir in 363 after Jovian ceded five transtigritine provinces to the Sasanians;
Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae, ed. and trans. J.C. Rolfe, I-III (Cambridge, MA; London,
1935—40), 25.7.9-11. The best sources for Christianity in the city in the fifth and sixth centuries
are the lives of local holy men found in John of Ephesus’s Lives of the Eastern Saints. See
also Harvey, Asceticism and Society in Crisis: John of Ephesus and ‘The Lives of the Eastern
Saints’, much of which concerns John of Ephesus’s description of the holymen of Diyarbakir.

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were there, he along with the whole community asked him to instruct them
in how to read a manuscript. 59

First Arrival in Edessa

After he consented and was with them one winter, he heard about the
assembly which is in Edessa. He left and departed for there, and after he
went and found the assembly which was flourishing with spiritual inter¬
course and instruction in the scriptures, he was there ten years. When his
uncle heard about his learning, he sent an anathema after him 60 and brought
him and convinced him to join [597] him and benefit the brothers who were
there. After he consented to this, about three hundred brothers assembled
around him within a brief period. Due to the love of learning he possessed
and perhaps because of an unknown (reason), 61 he left after some time and
secretly departed for Edessa again. He was there ten more years. When that
holy one (i.e. Emmanuel) knew that the time of his death was already near,
he sent an anathema after him a second time, harsh with great entreaties, and
he brought him from Edessa and entrusted to him the whole assembly of the
monastery. 62 A little later he rested (i.e. died) and after this he (i.e. Narsai)
was there one year, nourishing all the brothers who were there in bodily
as well as spiritual things, while he was painting before them a beautiful
likeness in himself, 63 according to the apostolic word, with all good works. 64

59 Or ‘portion’, i.e. of a manuscript or lection. This is an appropriate form of hagiographical
precociousness for a text composed in Nisibis since it is a typical practice at an East-Syrian
school (cf. Thomas of Marga, Book of the Governors 1:75.8,11.149; ibid. 1:163.7-12, II: 328).
The verb, the afel form of q-r-’, is used in the ‘reading lesson’ at the time of creation in the
Cause (p. 348) and also in a number of school texts to form the noun, maqryana (‘reader’),
one of the school offices.

60 It seems that this would only have been possible if Emmanuel was already bishop of
Diyarbakir. However, Diyarbakir is far from Kephar Mari, which was in Bet Zabdai, under
Persian rule and subject to the church of Nisibis.

61 This obscure line may correspond with the allusions the author makes to the criticisms
that were made of Narsai. However, this line could also be rendered: ‘Because of that thing
which was not known (to him)’, i.e. ‘there was something he wanted to learn there’.

62 Again, it seems strange that Emmanuel, the bishop of Diyarbakir, could formally estab¬
lish his nephew as the head of a monastery in Bet Zabdai. It is possible that the text is vague
and is referring to another monastery, one near or in Diyarbakir.

63 Or‘in his soul’.

64 Tit 2:7. The full verse is: ‘In every thing show a likeness in yourself with all good works,
and in your teaching may you have a sound word’; compare this to the NRSV: ‘Show yourself
in all respects a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, gravity....’

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56 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

After he was there for one year, he handed the work of teaching over to
one of the brothers who were there, whose name was Gabriel, and he again
departed for the School of Edessa.

On Barsauma of Nisibis

At that time Mar Barsauma, the bishop of Nisibis, went to Edessa and the
two of them were there together, intimates of one another. 65 Because Mar
Barsauma was a sharp person, in little time he learned and was illuminated
in the scriptures as well as their meaning more than anyone else. Grace
afterwards moved him to direct his foot [598] to the city of Nisibis. After he
came and was tested in his learning, he was commissioned by the bishop and
all his clergy to be the homilist 66 in the church. Because of the polish of his
speech he was loved in all the city, and after the bishop at that time had gone
to rest, he was deemed worthy of the work of the episcopate by the whole
community. After he received ordination 67 to the high priesthood, he did
everything that the ecclesial canon teaches as the Christian teaching. 68 What
this glorious man did in his episcopate, what harmful weeds 69 he uprooted
from the Christian field, what good seed he planted in the Eastern region by
means of his beautiful traditions and ecclesial canons, 70 now is not the time
for us to tell, since our aim is another. 71

65 On Barsauma, bishop of Nisibis at the time of the foundation of the School and a contro¬
versial figure within the Church of the East, see Gero, Barsauma.

66 Syr. mtargmana, lit. ‘translator’, but this term often refers to a type of homilist whose
works were called, turgame. If this term is to be taken literally as ‘translator’, it may suggest
that some members of the church spoke Persian and required translation during the lection
and homilies.

67 Syr. kiratawnya, from Gr. cheirotoma.

68 This is clearly an apology for one who was highly contested in his lifetime and ‘a suspect
figure in the eyes of subsequent “mainline” Nestorian tradition’, Gero, Barsauma , 1.

69 Syr. zizane, from Gr. zizdnion.

70 The ‘traditions’ {mashlmanwata) may refer to the exegetical ideas he passed on, since
this term is specifically used to refer to the exegesis of the School in the Cause (p. 382); see
also Gero, Barsauma, 89-90. The canons ( qanone ) may be either those of the Council of 484
(see note SL 99) or the canons of the School of Nisibis, either the original ones, which are no
longer extant, or those of 496 (Voobus, Statutes, 31-32).

71 Syr. nisha, equivalent to Gr. skopos. See note 14 in the introduction to Barhadbeshabba’s
Ecclesiastical History above.

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Rabbula, First Head of the School; Narsai takes over the School

There was an exegete then at that time in Edessa. They say about him that he
was an enlightened man. 72 His name was Rabbula. 73 This man was adorned
with all things, with true learning and perfect virtue in manner of life. 74 He
bore all the work of the school, reading as well as elementary instruction 75
and interpretation. 76 He also had confidence in speech. After this holy one
fulfilled his course, according to the will of God, [599] and rested from his
labour, there was an inquiry concerning who would be suitable for the work
of teaching after him. All of them equally shouted, ‘Mar Narsai the presbyter
is suitable, not only because of his old age, 77 his success, his work, and the
elegance of his speech, but also because of his perfect and divine manner
of life and his condescension towards everyone’. After they compelled him
with many (entreaties), he received only the work of teaching and made for
himself a reader and an elementary instructor so that it would be easier for
him to work at (interpreting) the meaning of the divine scriptures. 78 He led

72 Syr. saggi nuhra , lit. ‘much of light’.

73 This passage has a number of parallels with the description of Cyrus in the Cause (pp.
382-83). The Rabbula, whom this passage seems to be mistakenly referring to, was the main
antagonist of the Dyophysite cause in fifth-century Edessa! On Rabbula, see most recently
Doran, Stewards of the Poor, 41-105, which includes a translation of his Vita. For an older,
but fuller study, see Georg Gunter Blum, Rabbula von Edessa. Der Christ, der Bischof der
Theologe (CSCO 300; Louvain: Secretariat du CSCO, 1969). See also note CS 460. This
passage, as well as an interpolation to the Life of Alexander the Sleepless, are the sources for
the scholarly tendency to mistakenly associate him with the School of the Persians in Edessa
(cf. Life of Alexander the Sleepless, E. de Stoop, ed., Vie d Alexandre VAcemete, lat., PO 6:5
(1911): 673.13-674.13; see comments at Daniel Caner, Wandering, Begging Monks: Spiri¬
tual Authority and the Promotion of Monasticism in Late Antiquity (Berkeley: University of
California Press, 2002), 250.

74 The Syriac phrase, ‘(he) was adorned with all (things)’ ( b-kolhen msabbat ( h)wa ), then
followed by an exepegetical line referring to the specific virtues, may also be found in the
Cause in its description of Henana of Adiabene (see Cause 390). This phrase may have a
Greek source. In the traditional Neoplatonic introduction to Aristotle, which consists of ten
sections, the sixth section asks what qualities are needed for one about to embark on the
study of Aristotle. In Philoponus’s commentary on the Categories, he states that the student
(akroates) should be ‘en pasi kekosmemenos ’ (Philoponus, In Categorias 6.30), which is strik¬
ingly similar to the Syriac phrase.

75 Syr. hegyana, which could also be rendered ‘vocalizing’.

76 For a discussion of the three categories of teaching, qeryana, hegyana, and pushshaqa,
and their relationship to the three echelon system at the School of Nisibis, see, e.g., Becker,
Fear of God, 70-71, 87-88. See Appendix III on this passage and its parallel in the Cause.

77 This phrase serves as a confirmation for those who would argue that Narsai lived to an
uncommonly old age. Cf. Baumstark, Geschichte, 110.

78 See Appendix III on this passage and its parallel in the Cause.

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the assembly for the long period of twenty years, in all things beneficial,
and in that time, there was no Satan nor evil appearance. 19 But it is not our
set purpose to describe all his glorious deeds, lest our speech burden the
audience.

Narsai is Slandered and Attempts to Convert Him Fail

When Satan saw that his kingdom was already despoiled, his side brought
low, and his force diminished, he then began to stir up trouble and fear
by means of evil men. 80 He found as the symposiarch 81 for his error the
local bishop whose name was Cyrus, 82 a man heretical and evil [600] in
mind, and with a pack of thieves - I mean, his clergy - he raised sedition
against him. They were saying, ‘This exegete is heretical, since he agrees
with the opinion of Theodore (of Mopsuestia) and Nestorius, students of
Paul (of Samosata). 83 He meditates upon their writings and speaks their
traditions.’ After the sons of the evil one conspired to make him depart, if it
was possible, from his prior opinion and to make him their ally, or to cast
him from life completely, as the Jews did our Lord and the Apostles, some
men came to him who showed him the outward appearance of friendship and
revealed to him the deceit which was composed against him by the whole
community. They advised him that if it was possible he should depart from
that prior opinion. But the cause of this was envy. For they thought, ‘How
can a Persian man subdue Romans, this man, who is also foreign to the order
of reason?’ 84 They composed against him an accusation with that prior one,

79 1 Kgs 5:4. This line occurs before Solomon is about to build the temple, thus suggesting
a comparison between the schools and the temple in Jerusalem.

80 Similar statements show up in other parts of the Ecclesiastical History , e.g., Satan’s
plotting against the Church in Chap. 1 (Barhadbeshabba, La premiere partie de I’histoire,
182-85).

81 Syr. resh puhra, lit. ‘head of the banquet or company’. This term appears in the Acts of
Mar Mari, in Acta martyrum et sanctorum syriace, 1.70.20ff, or Amir Harrak, trans.. The Acts
of Mar Mari (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2005), 42 (19)ff. See Harrak’s discussion
of the ancient near eastern background of the puhra at xxii-xxvi.

82 Syr. Qura. On Cyrus, see note SL 89.

83 Paul of Samosata was commonly posited by the East-Syrians’ enemies to be the teacher
of their exegetical fathers. See note SL 20.

84 Whether this passage is historical or not, such concerns about a Persian living among
the Romans would have made sense in the fifth and sixth centuries, a time when the Sasanian
and Roman Empires were at war regularly. See Engelbert Winter and Beate Dignas, Rom und
das Perserreich: Zwei Weltmachte zwischen Konfrontation und Koexistenz (Berlin: Akademie,
2001) on political and diplomatic relations between the two empires. Questioning someone’s

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another one, which was more evil than (the first), saying, ‘His mind is with
the Persians. He seeks to raise sedition within the border region and wants to
stir up the kingdoms. Moreover, perhaps he would betray the city of Edessa.’
Then when this holy one had heard [601] the accusations and learned 85 of
this contrivance and evil artifice, 86 he prayed and said, ‘Lord, your eyes are
upon faith, since faith has perished and hastened away from their mouth.
Truth has perished from the earth and no one is upright among human
beings. For all lay in wait in ambushes and each man hunts his brother
for destruction.’* 1 Although at times they lured him with great enticements
and at other times they scared him with the threat of force, the foot of his
thought did not slip from the straight path of faith. Rather, he would say: The
wicked were sitting and meditating against me, but I was meditating upon
your commandments , 88

When those who cause others to stumble 89 understood that his thinking
was not going to desert his prior opinion, they asked him to do this, however,
in outward form and to confess only by word of mouth that he actually
agreed with their way of thinking. He then responded to them, ‘This is
opposed to the word of the Apostle. For thus he spoke: In your teaching let
there be for you a sound word, which is chaste and uncorrupted, and no one
will despise it, since whoever stands against us will be ashamed, when he
is unable to say anything hateful against us. 90 If I do this, what is the sound
word, which is adorned with teaching and the chastity of the fear of God?
What will the incorruptibility gain [602] by which we appear as true before
those who are against us?’ After those who lead astray heard this sound

capacity to reason is an especially heinous insult in a context where such a capacity is consid¬
ered the characteristic differentiating human beings from other animals (see the discussion of
the Tree of Porphyry in Appendix II). Note the use of the word taksa (see note CS 56).

85 The text seems to be corrupt here. The Ms has wylpw with a ptaha (a short a vowel)
over the yod. Nau takes this as the pa‘el form meaning, ‘and they taught him’ (understanding
the demonstrative hand to refer to Narsai). However, this should be the irregular form, alleph
{’Ip), with the frontal alaph (’) instead of the yod (y). The rendering, ‘he learned’, is derived by
removing the final wau and ignoring the manuscript’s ptaha. Ignoring the vowel provided by
the Ms and taking the text as it is would offer ‘they learned’, but this does not make sense in
this context. Perhaps the singular verb was accidently conflated with a following demonstrative
pronoun, hu (hw).

86 Syr. tekna, from Gr. tekhne.

87 A conflation of Jer 5:3, Jer 7:28 and Mic 7:2.

88 Ps 119:23.

89 Syr. makshale, or rendered passively as ‘those who are caused to stumble’.

90 Tit 2:7-8. Narsai quotes from the same passage which was used above to describe him,
cf. note 64.

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response, they replied to him, ‘Even Paul, the Lord, and the Apostles propor¬
tioned their doctrine to the weak, or have you not heard the word of Paul who
said: With everyone I became everything so that I might benefit everyone. 91
Bear one another’s burden. 92 For you in whom there is faith, maintain it in
yourself before God and leave room for the wrath (of God).’ 93 When the holy
one heard their crafty response he said to them: ‘What shall 1 do regarding
the Lord who said: Whoever acknowledges me before human beings I too
will acknowledge him before my father who is in heaven and whoever denies
me before human beings I also will deny him before my father who is in
heaven , 94 Or regarding Paul who said: If I were pleasing human beings up
to this point, I would not be a servant to the Messiah. 93 One who does his
will is better than a thousand who are opposed to it. 96 For what is the benefit
that I should deny the truth and make others to trust in error?’

Narsai’s Public Accusation and Flight

When they knew that it was not possible for them to make him stray by
these (arguments), they went with an accusation before the crowd and they
passed a sentence against him of burning by fire. 97 Then one of [603] his
friends, when he heard of their deceit, came quickly and informed the holy
one, ‘If you do not save yourself by some means tonight, they will cast you
into the fire’. When the spiritual athlete had learned this, that all of them
were subject at that time to Satanic error and that they had a Jezebel-like

91 1 Cor 9:22. This text does not follow that of the Peshitta. The author seems to be quoting
from memory (or a faulty text) since the preposition ‘am (‘with’) instead of /- and the verb etar
(‘I might benefit’) instead of ahe (‘I might save’) come from the preceding verses.

92 Gal 6:2.

93 Rom 12:19. This same biblical verse is quoted by Narsai below at 604.12-13.

94 Mt 10:32.

95 Gal 1:10.

96 Sir 16:3.

97 The text uses what seems to be legal language for an extralegal attempt to kill Narsai. In
any case, it is doubtful that burning alive was a legal form of punishment in Edessa and the text
may be engaged in the standard hagiographical practice of characterizing the saint’s enemies as
excessively violent and cruel. However, there seems to have been de facto carte blanche in the
selection of punishments in the later Roman Empire and so any form of punishment, however
gruesome, may not be so unrealistic. See, for instance, Ramsey MacMullen, ‘Judicial Savagery
in the Roman Empire’, Chiron 16 (1986): 147-66 (repr. in Changes in the Roman Empire:
Essays in the Ordinary [Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1990], 204-17), or Kathleen
Coleman, ‘Fatal Charades: Roman Executions Staged as Mythological Enactments’, Journal
of Roman Studies 80 (1990): 44-73.

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mind, 98 he quickly arose after it had become dark, trusting in divine aid, and
he departed from there. 99 When he arrived at the church of the city, he found
there some Persians. He asked them if it was possible to take his books with
them. For this was his whole treasure. For when they learned the cause of
the affair they were very pleased (to help him) and diligently carried all his
books all the way to Nisibis. The next morning there was a search in Edessa,
by his friends as well as his enemies, those whose desire did not succeed.
After they informed Cyrus about his manner of life and about the ordering of
his thought and about his care for learning, they set up a great crowd against
him (i.e. Cyrus), as if he were the cause of the affair. 100 From the cause of
envy it came to this. 101 (They said,) 102 ‘Perhaps something leprous clings in
his mind and by this pretext he is seeking to make it stick to us’. 103 When this
evil abortion heard that he had come out against the truth at the wrong time,
he laid down before them [604] with oaths that he was not 104 one of these
men, and that neither did he perceive that affair nor was he the cause of it, but
that others led him astray, ‘If I had known that it was thus as you have said, I
would not have chased him from here, even if he was sick in his mind, which
was marred from his being accused’. He also said, ‘If there is someone who
is able to bring him again, I will judge that person worthy of double honour’.
After many tried and were unable to do this, adversaries began to peek out
from their holes and to mock him before his friends as one who induces
confusion, as haughty and headstrong, 105 since he left and secretly departed.

98 Syr. izabelaytd. Such a Syriac adjectival formation became common in the sixth century.
On Jezebel, see 1 Kgs 21. The comparison to Jezebel is also made in Chap. 30 of the Ecclesi¬
astical History on Nestorius’s exile, at 580.2 to describe Cyril’s attacks on Nestorius.

99 On the secret flight of saints, see Alison Goddard Elliot, Roads to Paradise: Reading the
Lives of the Early Saints (Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1987), 89.

100 This sentence is unclear. Presumably ‘they’ refers to Narsai’s friends. The syntax of the
Syriac phrase rendered ‘as if he were’ is awkward.

101 It is possible that this sentence is part of the following quotation.

102 The following is not clearly marked as a quotation. It is only the phrase ‘to us’ that
would explicitly suggest this.

103 Narsai was referred to as the ‘leprous’ by his enemies (see note SL 76). Cf. Barhad-
besabba. La premiere partie de VHistoire , 201.

104 The text has layteh, lit. ‘she is not’, which must be a scribal error for laytaw(hy), the
masculine form.

105 This lines seems corrupt: bar hultana ba-hthira ba-sphapha. The first term, bar hultana,
lit. ‘son of mixture or commingling’, may refer to someone who causes confusion. The two
terms following this one have the preposition b- added, perhaps in analogy with the preceding
object (‘him’, Syr. beh). The former of these two terms is clear, but the latter, s-p-p- ‘ ( sphdphd ,
‘burning’) does not fit and I have emended it to the adjectival sappipha. Another reading would
be to emend hthira to a noun and to translate the b- with the nouns adverbially.

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After the holy one heard about these men’s mockery and his friends’
sadness, he wrote (a letter) 106 and sent (it) to them, (saying) ‘It seems to me
that you have forgotten the story of Moses, for what reason he departed from
Egypt, 107 and that of Jacob who came to Haran, 108 and the prophet David
how at one time he departed from Saul and at another time from Abshalom,
and he was not held blameworthy. 109 In the same way our Lord and Paul,
his student, did this. Who would dare to blame them? For it is written thus:
Leave room for the wrath (of God). 110 And again: Go, my people, and enter
your chambers and close your doors before you and hide yourself for a little
while until my wrath passes. 111 Who indeed mocked and made game of 112 the
prophet Jeremiah because [605] he fled and hid himself from the evil king
of his time, except one who is like you? 113 Has it not been heard by you then
the news of the six towns of refuge which Moses commanded the people to
build as an aid to the wronged?’ 114 When those impudent men heard these
things, even they were ashamed and embarrassed of their own boldness.

Narsai Arrives at Nisibis

The holy one, after he arrived in Nisibis, did not enter the city. For he thought
that he would perhaps be hindered from his intended goal, which was in
truth what happened. But he went to the Monastery of the Persians, which

106 For a discussion that treats the following text as if it were an actual letter, see Arthur
Voobus, ‘Les vestiges d’une lettre de Narsai et son importance historique’, OS 9 (1964),
512-23. However, there is little reason to believe that an actual document is preserved here (cf.
Becker, Fear of God, 234 n. 72).

107 This refers to Moses’ initial flight from Egypt when he went to Midian (Exod
2:11-15).

108 Jacob went to Haran when he fled his brother Esau after tricking him out of his paternal
blessing (Gen 28:10).

109 E.g. 1 Sam 19:8-17 and 2 Sam 15:13-31 respectively.

110 Rom 12:19. This is ironic since the same biblical verse is quoted by those trying to
persuade Narsai to dissimulate at 602 above.

111 Isa 26:20.

112 The Syriac text has ’tsry, which could be rendered as ‘he burst/was tom (with indigna¬
tion)’, but assuming the manuscript has made the common confusion of the letters dalath and
resh we may emend the text to ’tsdy, vocalized as ’ etsari , which makes more sense here. It is
unclear what Nau thinks of this word because his translation, ‘a blame’, is ambiguous.

113 Cf. Jer 36:19-26.

114 Num 35.13-14. The Syriac, ‘shiqe (‘wronged’), can mean those who are oppressed in
general, but the root ‘-sh-q is used in particular for making false accusations and slanders of one
who is innocent. This sense may be what suggested the word to the author. The cities of asylum
established by Moses according to the passage from Numbers were for accidental murderers.

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lay to the east of the city. 115 For his intention was to go down to the east, that
is, to the interior of Persia, in order that he might provide instruction 116 there
and plant the seed of the learning of the fear of God even if (only) in a few
who were there. When he was thinking to do this, three clergymen happened
on the monastery and saw that the man was modest in his face and honour¬
able and glorious in his radiant appearance, and they asked about him, who
he was and what news he brought. Then after they learned the object of
their question, they eagerly entered and informed Mar Barsauma about him.
When he heard, he earnestly sent to him some men from the clergy, (saying)
that if he ordered he could enter the city. After he was not persuaded to
enter with them and gave as an excuse for this sometimes weariness, [606]
at other times sickness, sometimes that he was a stranger, at other times that
he was an unknown person, even sometimes that there was no need for him
to enter, then the bishop again sent people, but this time his archdeacon and
ten of the clergy as an honour to him. When they went out and entreated
him in many ways that he might see his friend, he thought that perhaps it
might be a mark of shame and contempt for him to not enter. So he stood
and entered with them.

Barsauma Persuades Narsai to Settle in Nisibis

After he entered the city, Mar Barsauma went out to meet him with much
pomp and with comely honour he led him into the church. Then they conversed
with one another for a little while. After he learned the cause of his migra¬
tion from there, he requested that, if he desired, he should leave off his prior
design, and that which he intended to do far off would be accomplished there
in proximity and by the interaction of the two of them planting the assembly
of Mesopotamia, so as to offer a great benefit to both sides, to the Romans
and the Persians at once. 117 Then as if to someone who was resisting, the
bishop said to that holy one: ‘Do not think that this deed is human, master. 118
For although they planned evil against you and completed their satanic plan,

115 Some monasteries and schools had specific ethnic identities. That Narsai would go to
a monastery identified with Persians within the Persian realm would suggest that this one was
specifically Persian (in contrast to the broader Aramaean population) and that Narsai himself,
whose name is Persian, was ethnically Persian. On such ethnic associations, see, e.g., Becker,
Fear of God, 66-67. Dillemann, Haute Mesopotamie Orientale, 95, mentions the settling of
Persians in Nisibis after it was ceded to the Sasanians in 363 CE.

116 Syr. ne‘bed tulmada, lit. ‘he might make instruction or discipleship’.

117 Nisibis was on the Sasanian side of the border with the Roman Empire.

118 Syr. abun, lit. ‘our father’, a term used for masters in a monastic context.

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64 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

nevertheless that hidden providence, which sees everything, did not turn
away from you. But it did what was expedient for the purpose of providence,
just as in the time of Joseph and in the time [607] of the Apostles. 119 Just as
at one time the assembly migrated from Antioch to Daphne and from there
to Edessa, 120 so also now I think that it has migrated from Edessa to here
because the ones who were reading 121 were not worthy. 122 For, behold, also
the Apostles endeavoured much to plant the gospel in Judea. Because that
rabid nation was not worthy of this lasting good, when they thought to harm
them by expelling them from their midst, it rather turned out to be a benefit
for the Apostles since they were not chastised along with them in Titus’s
punishment. 123 But by this cause they went over to the gentiles. Then they
went out to the ways and the narrow paths. They compelled the gentiles to
enter the messianic banquet. 124 Thus now also it seems to me that this has
happened. Because the Romans were not worthy of receiving the truth nor
of enjoying the shining rays of the light of true faith, and are going to earn 125
punishment for their sins; on account of this they incited a war against you,
that you yourself would be saved like Lot from punishment, while they will
be destroyed like the harmful Sodomites. 126 But you also, like the Apostles,

119 Presumably the text is referring to Joseph being taken against his will into Egypt, which
it compares in the following passage to the scattering of the Apostles after the Roman repres¬
sion of the Jewish Revolt (66-73 CE). According to the author, both events worked in the end
according to divine providence.

120 This is obscure. The ‘School of Edessa’ may have been understood to be a successor of
a prior school that had existed in Antioch, which first moved to Daphne, the suburb of Antioch,
and then to Edessa. There is no precedent for this. It is possible that this tradition derives
ultimately from the story of the transfer of St Babylas’s remains to Daphne and their subse¬
quent removal during the reign of Julian. The remains were eventually returned to Antioch, but
perhaps there is a connection here to this story since there was a strong interest in the story of
Julian in Edessa, such as we find in the Syriac Julian Romance, J.G.E. Hoffmann, Iulianus der
Abtriinnige (Leiden, 1880); Hermann Gollancz, trans., Julian the Apostate (London: Oxford
University Press, 1928).

121 I.e. studying.

122 This suggests that there were problems within the schools themselves, particularly the
School of the Persians, and it differs from the reason provided earlier in the text for the closure
of the School.

123 The destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. Cf. Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History , 3.1.

124 Cf. Lk 14:23.

125 Nau’s text has lmlp\ which is a mistake for the manuscript’s lm‘p\ the manuscript
having an ‘ayin instead of a lamadh. Vocalized as l-me ‘pa this can mean ‘increase, gain, collect,
amass’, which can take ’agra and yutrdna as a direct object (Payne Smith, Compendious Syriac
Dictionary, 422).

126 Cf. Gen 18:16-19:29.

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busy yourself and plant here the word of Orthodoxy. For if you do this, the
two sides will easily benefit, since it is close enough for your students to
come here [608] to you. Furthermore, Persians frequent here because of
the climate of the place, 127 and because the place is bountiful in all kinds of
products 128 it is easy for the brothers to live and succeed in learning scrip¬
ture, especially since I myself will be a helper to you in this business. For
although it happens that brave fighters are vanquished and flee from their
enemies, yet whenever they do not depart to far away but reside at the side
of a nearby place, this is a sign of their victory and the health of their soul.
In this way also if you reside 129 here in the neighbourhood of Edessa, it will
be a sign of your victory and a disgrace unto your enemies.’

After the holy one heard these words, his thought was inclined a little
and he promised him that if it was possible he would do this. That Barsauma,
as soon as he heard this, rejoiced greatly. Then he bought for the school 130
a caravansary 131 on the side of the church. Because there was a school there
before, and an exegete from Kashkar 132 whose name was Simeon, a great
and excellent man, 133 there was no hindrance in this matter, but the prior
students 134 busied themselves with learning. In a short time brothers began
to gather from all regions because of this holy one. These (deeds) of his (i.e.
Barsauma’s) glory will suffice up to this point.

127 On the climate of upper Mesopotamia, see Dillemann, Haute Mesopotamie Orientale,
64-67. Despite the dry heat of the summer, it is possible that some Persians visited Nisibis in
the summer to avoid the even worse conditions farther south.

128 On agriculture in Nisibis and its environs in antiquity, see ibid. 68-73.

129 Lit. ‘sit’. This could also be translated as ‘study’.

130 Syr. eskole.

131 Syr. bet gamle, lit. ‘place of camels’.

132 It is doubtful that he was an ‘exegete’ (or interpreter, Syr. mphashshqdnd) in the later
technical sense of the term. It is more likely that Kashkar is the modern city of Wasit in southern
Iraq, rather than the Kashkar in Central Asia.

133 In the Chronicle of Surf s chapter on the life of Narsai, when Narsai flees to Nisibis, he
finds ‘a small school’ which belonged to ‘Simeon of Beit Garmai’’ ( al-Jarmaqani ). In this text
it is only after Narsai has set up his school that Barsauma becomes interested in him: Chronicle
ofSiirt 2.1.114. See also Voobus, History , 50 and Gero, Barsauma, 64.

134 Syr. eskoldye.

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66 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Satan’s Assault on Narsai in Nisibis 135

Let us then also briefly make manifest [609] the manner of his way of life
and his kind of teaching, and how Satan did not cease from his war with
him, but at times openly, at other times secretly, was fighting to conquer
him. For this is set before us now to demonstrate, after we first set down
the pretexts by which Satan found the opportunity to cause trouble. For
because a cell was given to the holy one by the side of the house of Mar
Barsauma and everyone would throng to catch sight of him and salute
him, first, because of the novelty of the matter, second, because of the
modesty of his deportment, third, because of the excellence of his face,
fourth, because of his condescension towards everyone, fifth, because of the
abundance of his love, sixth, because of the copiousness of his teaching; on
account of this, one day the wife of the bishop, whose name was Mamai, 136
when she was coming from the church and saw the great crowd that was
standing there and the horses and the nobles, she was moved with great
envy against this and she began to be incensed with anger, like Jezebel the
instigator. 137 With great anger she entered her house, saddened and with her
face darkened, like Cain the murderer. 138 After Mar Barsauma saw her and
learned what the cause of her unhappiness was, she began to mock him and
make him jealous of the holy one, saying, ‘You yourself are not the bishop,
but rather a subordinate! You are not honoured, but rather one who honours
others. [610] But the bishop is this man, the neighbour you have made for
yourself!’ After he asked her what the occasion was for these words, she

135 The dispute between Narsai and Barsauma is also described in the later Chronicle
of Siirt 2.1.136-37 and Man, De patriarchis, 47.20ff (see note 13 in the introduction to this
volume). On this dispute, see Gero, Barsauma, 68-72.

136 Barsauma probably married sometime after the formal legalization of clerical marriage
at the Council of Bet Lapat (Gundeshapur, the prestigious Sasanian city) in 484 (Gero,
Barsauma , 41 n. 87). On the Council and Barsauma’s role in it and its aftermath, see Gero,
Barsauma, 41-56, 73-78, 79-88. On Barsauma’s marriage, see Gero, Barsauma, 57, 68-72,
82-83. On Mamai, the variant renderings of her name, including Mamowai, and the possible
Persian origin of the name, see Gero, Barsauma, 57, n. 188.

137 Again, on Jezebel, see 1 Kgs 21. See 98 above for a comparison of Narsai’s opponents
in Edessa to Jezebel. On women as the cause of men’s fall, see Kate Cooper, The Virgin and
the Bride: Idealized Womanhood in Late Antiquity (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press,
1996), 17-19.

138 Gen 4:5 is similar but not verbally the same. It is not clear whether the text is making
a comparison to Cain because of Mamai’s envy or her deceit, two sins Cain commonly repre¬
sents. See Glenthpj, Cain and Abel in Syriac and Greek Writers, 284-86.

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said, ‘You, busy yourself at actually being the bishop of Nisibis! 139 Get up
and look at how many nobles’ horses are standing at the door of the cell of
your exegete! 140 You will know right away what the occasion is!’ Because
human nature is wont to be led after weak passions and empty counsels,
as it is said, ‘the jealousy of a man is (greater) than his companion’, 141 on
account of this he was hurt by the holy one. When the holy one came to
see him, as was his custom, and he did not rejoice at his approach as he
always did, after a little while he asked him what the cause of this was, and
when he learned to what extent the woman was the cause of evils from the
beginning until the present, 142 he left and departed, and he went out to the
monastery of Kephar Mari, 143 which is in Bet Zabdai, 144 and he produced
there two memre, one on himself, the incipit of which is: ‘Poor is the time
which was presented to me in the place of my sojourn; and in it short is the
acquisition of the spiritual life’, 145 and the other is ‘Eve is the source from
which life flowed to human beings; she returned the pleasant drink to the
bitterness 146 of death’, 147 on the wife of Mar Barsauma. When he read this
memra in Nisibis before the faithful and before the whole church, then the
bishop felt remorse and sent for him to be brought from there. Because the

139 This line is not clear. The manuscript has tshkr (with a short a vowel added above the
t ) but the word tkshr (voc. tekshar), which is what I have translated here, has been placed in
the margin. Unfortunately I am unable to check the manuscript to see if tkshr is in the same
hand. The original word, tshkr (voc. teshkar ), meaning approximately ‘you dishonour’, fits
awkwardly with the rest of the sentence.

140 Or ‘Get up and look at the door of the cell of your exegete, how many nobles’ horses
are standing (by it)!’

141 Eccl 4:4.

142 It is possible the author is making a generalization here about all women, in which case
‘woman’ should be rendered without the definite article and ‘beginning’ would refer to the
beginning of creation and Eve’s responsibility for the fallen state of human beings.

143 See note SL 77.

144 Bet Zabdai was the region south of modern Siirt, in south-eastern Turkey.

145 Narsai, Homiliae et Carmina, 1:210-23. W. Macomber, ‘The Manuscripts of the Metrical
Homilies of Narsai’, 297 (Ms. 25). See also Corrie Molenberg, ‘As If From Another World:
Narsai’s Memra “Bad is the time’”, in All Those Nations ... Cultural Encounters within and with
the Near East, ed. H. L. J. Vanstiphout et al. (Groningen: Styx Publications, 1999), 101-08.

146 Syr. merrat, but the text could also be vocalized as Syr. marat, ‘mistress’.

147 Narsai, Homiliae et Carmina, II: 353-65. Macomber, ‘The Manuscripts of the Metrical
Homilies of Narsai’, 305 (Ms. 80). See also Corrie Molenberg, ‘Narsai’s memra on the reproof
of Eve’s daughters and the ctricks and devices> they perform’, LM 106 (1993): 65-87. Both
of Molenberg’s essays may miss the mark by assuming that these texts reflect historical reality,
when in fact it is possible that the biographical context has been in part invented to fit the topic
of each of these two memre. This would be something akin to what we find in, for example,
Suetonius’s Lives of the Poets.

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holy one knew [611] that the proximity of his cell stirred up strife between
them, as soon as he arrived he bought for himself a cell in another location
set close by to there, and there was for him some breathing space and quiet,
and they maintained love for one another until the end.

Narsai’s Scholastic Asceticism 148

Now he would take a simple nourishment regularly of one meal, and again he
would do this at evening time, or once every two days. His bed was a mat of
reed and palm, his bedding a patched cloak. He would work wholly in medita¬
tion upon the liturgy 149 and meditation on the scriptures, not giving place for
sleep to fall upon himself, 150 but upon a common seat 151 he would drive sleep
from his brow, 152 and if it happened that he was conquered to slumber from
his vigil, either he would stand and walk or he would place in his nostrils
materials which excite and awake, like spicy and sour things, or hot or pleasing
things, or he would lay a tome upon his face and in this way he would sleep
upon his seat. 153 Often the tome would be the cause of waking him, since it
would tip from its weight 154 (and fall) from his face to his hands. 155 The holy

148 See the discussion of this passage in Becker, Fear of God, 205.

149 Syr. herga d-teshmeshta.

150 Lit. ‘his sides’.

151 This puts an emphasis on his humility and approachability, since a seat (Syr. kursya ) is
commonly the throne of a teacher or bishop.

152 Lit. ‘eyebrows’.

153 Syr. mawtba. This is the same term used for the school ‘session’.

154 The manuscript reading, nt‘’ (voc. nat‘a ), which Nau presents in a footnote, seems
better than his suggested emendation, nt‘\ It is not clear why Nau made this far more awkward
emendation.

155 The notion of sleep in this passage has a clear Evagrian monastic background: ‘There
are certain impure demons who always sit in front of those engaged in reading and try to seize
their mind, often taking pretexts from the divine scriptures themselves and ending in evil
thoughts. It sometimes happens that they force them to yawn more than they are accustomed
and they instill a very deep sleep quite different from usual sleep. Whereas some of the brothers
have imagined that it is in accordance with an unintelligible natural reaction, I for my part have
learned this by frequent observation: they touch the eyelids and the entire head, cooling it with
their own body, for the bodies of the demons are very cold and like ice; and the head feels as
if it is being sucked by a cupping glass with a rasping sound. They do this in order to draw to
themselves the heat that lies within the cranium, and then the eyelids, relaxed by the moisture
and cold, slip over the pupils of the eyes. Often in touching myself I have found my eyelids
fixed like ice and my entire face numb and shivering. Natural sleep, however, normally warms
bodies and renders the faces of healthy people rosy, as one can learn from experience itself.’
Evagrius, On Thoughts 33 (trans. Sinkewicz, Evagrius ofPontus, 176).

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one demonstrated all this diligence so that while he was fleshly and mortal
he emulated the way of life of the angels.

The Heretical Jacob of Sarug Inspires Narsai to Write

[612] Now because the heretics, the sons of error, saw that with these
things they were not able to overpower the holy one and stir up the Church
against him as before, one of them whose name was Jacob of Sarug, who
was eloquent for evil and joined closely to heresy, began to compose
his heresy and error hypocritically by the way of the memre, which he
composed, since through the pleasant composition of enticing sounds he
drew 156 the bulk of the people from the glorious one. 157 What then did the
elect of God do? He did not even ignore this, but according to the word of
the psalmist he did what he said: With the chosen you have been chosen
and with the perverse you have been crooked. 158 But he set down the true
opinion of orthodoxy in the manner 159 of memre , fitted upon sweet tones.
He combined the meaning of the scriptures according to the opinion of the
holy fathers in pleasant antiphons in the likeness of the blessed David. 160
He established one memrd for each day of the year and he divided them
into twelve volumes, 161 each one of which consists of two prophets; all of
them adding up to twenty-four prophets. 162 He also set down another, one
which concerns foul habits, which is two other prophets, aside from the
other subjects which he set down according to the occasions that demanded
at the time.

156 Again, Nau’s emendation, ‘tp (voc. ‘taph) ‘to turn back, return’ seems unnecessary next
to the manuscript reading, ntp (voc. ntaph ), which he provides in a footnote.

157 The Syr. qutnd (‘bulk of the people’) could also be rendered ‘congregation’, which
would mean that Narsai was feeling pressure specifically within his own community due to
Jacob’s work.

158 Ps 18:26 (17:27). See Theodoret, Commentary on the Psalms, Psalms 1-72 (trans.
Robert C. Hill; Washington, DC: Catholic University Press, 2000), 128 (PG 80.981).

159 Syr. ba-zna mkaynd d-, lit. ‘in the fitted (or: constituted) manner of’, but in rendering
the English I have translated mkaynd as if it agrees with memre.

160 It is not clear why ‘tones’ (Syr. qindta) and ‘antiphons’ (Syr. hphdkdtd) are mentioned
here since they do not belong to the memra genre, which was apparently chanted and not
musical. David was commonly understood as the psalmist.

161 We find similar statements in the Chronicle ofSiirt (2.1.115) and ‘Abdisho 4 ’s Catalogue ,
Chap. LIII (Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.65).

162 Divisions of compilations seem to have been occasionally referred to as ‘prophets’. See
‘Abdisho‘’s Catalogue , Chap. XIX ( Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.31) on the works of Theodore
of Mopsuestia. See also Baumstark, Geschichte, 110.

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Criticism of and Trouble with the Persian Authorities 163

After Satan was beaten in these things he began to stir up and agitate
against him in another manner. How? For when [613] Peroz 164 went to Bet
Kaphtaraye 165 and that which was contrary to what he expected occurred,
because of the vain elation of his mind, the holy one set down this memra,
the incipit of which is this: ‘Friend of human beings, who has turned human
beings to knowledge of himself, turn my mind toward the teaching of the
word of life’. 166 Then, because he set in it rough words which suggested
the pride of his thought, seditious brothers went from among his students
to Kavad, 167 while he was camped against Amida. 168 These are their names:
Qaphar of Ladab from ‘Ayn Addad 169 and John bar ‘Amraye, 170 accursed
men, and they pointed him out there and said to him (i.e. Kavad), ‘That
one who sets down these (verses) is your adversary and the enemy of your
kingdom’. But then when believing people from the Khuzites 171 who were
there heard this they informed the holy one about this accusation, and
immediately he produced another memra, the incipit of which is: ‘Summit
of the (four) quarters (of the world), turn to the order of authority’. 172 The

163 Gero, Barsauma, 11-12.

164 Sasanian king, Peroz I, 459-84 CE.

165 This place is unknown. Voobus takes this as a mistake for Bet Qatraye (. History, 117).

166 This memra is no longer extant.

167 Sasanian king, 488-531 CE.

168 Syr. Amed (Diyarbekir). This refers to Kawad’s long and eventually successful siege
of Amida in 502/3, which is described in Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite, Chronicle , 50-53 and
Procopius, Wars, 1.7. The broader Persian War of 502-06 is treated fully by Pseudo-Joshua the
Stylite, Chronicle, 46-100 and Procopius, Wars, 1.7-9.

169 Nothing is known of him. I have translated Idby’ as ‘of Ladab’ (vocalized: ladabaya)
based upon Fiey, Assyrie Chretienne 111.75,136, which would place it in Bet Garmai. According
to Fiey, this could also be Larb. ‘Ayn Addad is unknown.

170 Nothing is known of him. On his ethnonym, see Fiey, Nisibe, 57, 227 and note SL 87.
Nau notes that ‘ Amraye is inserted in the margin.

171 This passage would suggest that the author believed Narsai to have been at the siege
or at least that Kavad established Nisibis as his headquarters during the campaign, which
is possible since it was the Persian city closest to Roman territory and would be the appro¬
priate place from which to launch a campaign against Diyarbakir. However, Pseudo-Joshua
and especially Procopius seem to suggest he was at the actual siege. The text could also be
referring to a later period in the broader campaign when Kawad was in the area of Nisibis (for
example, see Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite, Chronicle, 54). One also wonders what Khuzites are
doing at a siege of Amida, unless they are part of the army, and if they are, this suggests that
there were Christians from Khuzistan in the Sasanian military fighting against Rome, which
is noteworthy in itself.

172 This memra is no longer extant.

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Khuzites translated it into the Persian tongue. When it was read before the
king, because there were enticing words in it, which referred to the kingdom
of Persia, the king ceased from this opinion and the accusers, as a sign of
their guilt, left and departed from there in flight.

Narsai is Slandered Again

[614] Again, another matter. One time when an emissary was passing through,
some men from the city made the accusation against him, ‘He is an enemy of
your kingdom and he spies for the Romans’. When the emissary heard these
things, he promised that when he returned from Roman territory he would
crucify him. When this athlete heard that he (i.e. the emissary) decided upon
the death penalty for him without inquiry, he said, ‘If you return safely, 173
the Lord truly does not speak in me’. After he went, completed his mission,
and then arrived in Antioch, he died there according to the holy one’s word.
He ceased from his threat, 174 and the accusers were ashamed.

The Miraculous Healing of a Boy Harassed by a Demon

You have heard what he did against Satan. Come now and see what the
hidden sign has ministered by him. 175 One day when he was coming to
perform exegesis a woman was sitting in the marketplace along with her
son. When the holy one was passing by, a demon threw the youth to the
ground and beat him severely. Immediately his mother, crying, stood up
and grabbed the feet of the glorious one and said, ‘Lord help me’. 176 The
athlete then said to the brother with him, ‘Do not falter, since if we seek

173 There may be a pun here since what is translated as ‘safely’ (Syr. ba-shlama) can also
mean ‘in peace’ - exactly how an emissary would hope to return.

174 Lit. ‘he/it ceased from the threat of him’, the pronominal suffix rendered either subjec¬
tively as ‘his threat’ or objectively as ‘the threat against him’ (lit. ‘of him’). This phrase is
awkward since the subject seems to be the emissary who was dead. The manuscript could be
corrupt, in which case perhaps a waw fell off the verb and its third-person plural subject was
‘the accusers’.

175 The ‘hidden sign’ (Syr. remza kasya) is divine providence which surreptitiously fulfils
its will within the world (cf. Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,
504.1, in the chapter on Theodore of Mopsuestia). There is a play on words in this particular
passage since the anecdote itself, as is stated below, ‘hints at’ (Syr. terinoz ) the other virtuous
and powerful acts of Narsai. The ‘hidden sign’ appears in earlier literature, e.g. Narsai, Metrical
Homilies, 1.323 (p. 56).

176 This story seems modelled on similar entreaties in the Gospels, cf. Mk 7:25.

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from the Lord about this (matter) with a clear intention, he will work by our
hands even things greater than these, as he said: Everything that you seek in
prayer and you believe, you will receive'} 11 After this he gave a command
to the brothers [615] who were with him and they presented their prayer in
the middle of the marketplace and they chanted 178 a psalm over him. After
he prayed he set his hand upon him and traced between his eyes the outline
of the cross. Immediately the demon 179 fled from him, and he did not throw
him down again. This affair suffices for us to hint at also the other things
which occurred and have not been set down here.

Conclusion

These are the glorious deeds of the holy one. This is the manner of his
teaching and the order of his way of life, he who from his youth to his old
age led the assembly of Nisibis forty years, 180 the one of Edessa twenty, 181
and the one of the monastery six years. He was buried in a good old age
with all the holy ones, those of the same faith as him. Henceforth a crown
of righteousness is preserved for him, which the Lord will bestow upon him
on that day. 182 To Him and to his Father and to the Holy Spirit honour and
glory for ever and ever. Amen.

177 Mt 21:22.

178 Syr. shammesh(w). This word literally means ‘to serve’ but it is used for the perfor¬
mance of the liturgy.

179 The word for demon (Syr. daywa) is different from the one used above (Syr. she’da).

180 From this Voobus argues for two dates of exodus from Edessa, the first when Narsai
left, for which event Voobus understood the present text to be a description, and the second in
489, referred to in most of the other sources ( History , 33^47). The presupposition in this is that
Narsai did not live until 529, the necessary date of death if he led the School for forty years and
left Edessa in 489. Voobus, however, assumes that forty years represents an accurate calculation
and not a typological number. Several Israelite figures’ careers lasted forty years: Eli, David,
Solomon, Jehoash, and Moses, who led the people in the wilderness for this amount of time.
If Voobus is correct, then Narsai lived to an extremely old age, since he is referred to above as
already old when he took over the school in Edessa (p. 599 and note 77). The sources disagree
on the length of his tenure of office. For example, the Chronicle of Siirt (2.1.115) also states
that it was forty years, while the Cause gives forty-five (see note CS 394). Later sources give
even more variations (Voobus, History , 118-21).

181 This number could also be typological. For example, Samson judged for twenty years
before he was betrayed, Judg 15:20.

182 2 Tim 4:8; Jas 1:12.

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LIFE OF ABRAHAM OF BET RABBAN:
TRANSLATION AND NOTES

Chapter 32: The story of the way of life of Mar Abraham, the presbyter and
exegete of the divine scriptures 1

Early Life and Training under Narsai

[616] Now this spiritual athlete was also from the land of M‘alta. 2 For he
was a kinsman of Mar Narsai and of the same stock as well as from the same
village. 3 The name of his father was Bar Sahde. 4 After he reached fifteen
years of age, he was moved by divine instigation to let go of and abandon
all the desirable things of this world and to concern himself with spiritual
labour. When he heard about Mar Narsai, where he was and what his work
was, he asked his father that they (i.e. his family) might conduct him to him.
Then after his father was persuaded and brought him to Nisibis and Mar
Narsai was informed about him, that he was his kinsman, he asked what his
name was. His father said, ‘Narsai, like your own name’. Immediately he
changed his name and called him Abraham and said, ‘There should not be
two Narsais in one cell’. As it seems to me, by prophecy this [617] happened,
since just as Abraham became ‘father of many nations’ 5 by changing his
name, so also it was established that he would be so for all of Persia by a
spiritual birth. After he was there a short time and he was tested, progressing
from day to day in the learning of the fear of God and in the fervour of his
love, 6 he manifested great care for learning. Furthermore, his master showed
special concern for him and in little time he surpassed many, those of the
same age as him, in his training. In his conduct he was so (excellent) that

1 On Abraham, see Baumstark, Geschichte , 115; on him and his tenure of office, see
Voobus, History , 134-210. Voobus suggests his tenure of office ran from approximately 510
to 569, with the brief interlude of John of Bet Rabban’s leadership from c. 547 to 561/2 or 564
(on John, see Baumstark, Geschichte , 115-16 and Voobus, History , 211-22).

2 See note LN 12.

3 Syr. bar qriteh, lit. ‘son of his village’. Familial relations may have played a role in the
ascent of certain figures within the Church of the East at the time. Elsewhere we are told that
Job the Interpreter from Seleucia-Ctesiphon, a kinsman of Narsai, was one of two selected to
replace the Catholicos Ezekiel, but the Shah supported Isho‘yahb of Arzon (582-95) ( Chron¬
icle ofSiirt 2.2.118), who himself had led the School of Nisibis prior to becoming Catholicos
(cf. Cause 389-90).

4 Lit. ‘son of martyrs’.

5 Cf. Gen 17:4.

6 Or ‘love for him’ (i.e. God).

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because of his humility he was named a second Moses by all the community.
Because the Lord knew his properties, 7 on account of this he selected him
beforehand and rendered the reading of and meditation on the scriptures
more dear to him than the tender shoot was to Jonah. 8

Abraham’s Learning Appropriate to What is Required in the Body

When he arrived at the measure of youth, when nature is especially full of
force, impulse waxes strong, 9 all the passions of youth are enflamed as a
vessel that burns with fire, the body seeks whatever belongs to it, and the
soul chooses that which is opposed to it; on account of this, empowered by
grace, he trampled on all those bodily things and chose these divine things,
while also in this way he did not completely reject the very functions of the
body, because one is not able to receive (learning) without it. 10 For although
it is not possible for that divine magnificence to be known [618] except by
these things proper to it, while it subtly imprints and sculpts them by deeds,
nevertheless its likeness did not confer them in a participatory manner, as
the folly of others (holds). 11 First, this (divine magnificence), regarding 12
everything it knows, its knowledge precedes the perfection of deeds, since
unaccompanied by learning it knows everything perfectly without experi¬
ence or an intermediary. But created (beings), are not only prior to their
knowledge, and their coming-into-being (prior) to their essential being, 13

7 Lit. ‘the things which belonged to him’.

8 Lit. ‘the tender shoot of Jonah’. The ‘tender shoot’ or ‘young plant’ ( shrura / sherrura)
refers to the gourd of Jonah (cf. Jon. 4:6). The same expression is used in the chapter on
Theodore of Mopsuestia in a similarly scholastic context (Barhadbeshabba, La second partie
de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 504.12). A similar expression appears at Cause 353.

9 Apparently following the manuscript, Nau’s text places a petaha (a short a vowel) over the
first letter of tqp, but this does not make sense and instead I vocalize the word as tdqeph.

10 The verb ‘receive’ ( qabbel ) can take more than one implicit direct object as it is used
here, but since this verb is commonly used in pedagogical contexts for a student’s ‘reception’
of learning from his master it seems appropriate to add this object (‘learning’) (see note LN
20). An alternative object may be something approximate to ‘perceptions of the outside world’.
The close connection between bodies and learning is apparent in a number of statements in the
Neoplatonic corpus to which the East Syrians had access. Embodiment and language are both
signs of our fallen state and the only means by which we can communicate truth.

11 This is a critique of ‘pagan’ Neoplatonists as well as Origenists who argued that human
beings can directly participate in the divine attributes. The word translated here as ‘in a partici¬
patory manner’ is the Syriac mshawtapha’it.

12 Syr. d, or simply ‘of’.

13 The distinction between coming-into-being {hwaya) and essential being ( ituta ) is
addressed in note CS 67.

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but also experience concerning it is prior to their knowledge. For experi¬
ence is the necessity pressing it to come into being. In turn, the power to
name, which is instructed by these things, is prior to the deed. In sum,
that is to say, the created thing is differentiated from its creator in all of
its properties. 14 If all spiritual beings are yoked by this limit of necessity,
especially the soul, whose functions are heavier and more ponderous than
those of (spiritual beings), it is not able to do anything individually. 15 For
although its (i.e. the soul’s) nature is loftier than all sensible embodiment,
nevertheless since it has never seen their luminous clarity, 16 it is hence cast
down from the substances akin to its form. 17 Since from the beginning of its
coming-into-being it has been shut in and mixed up with the fleshly house
and it has possessed with it(self) a love for it from the beginning, in the
likeness of a fetus which loves those dark and narrow places in which it was
formed; on account of this, even while it receives learning about something,
[619] whether concerning spiritual and divine natures or in turn concerning
corporeal and bodily ones, learning enters into it by the fleshy doors of the
senses. Because of this there is a time when the senses cause it to stray, either
by the troubled waters of their mixture, 18 by the impulse of fleshly desire, or
by error and treachery, and as a camel with a bit and a dog with a leash, so
they tether it to everything they want.

Because this man of God 19 experienced and knew all these things from the
very beginning, he therefore thought to yoke and harness his bodily senses
by means of work, vigilance both night and day, and scarce, measured-out
foods, so that they might not become strong and rage against him, as also the
divine Paul did: I subject my body and enslave it, lest I who have announced
(the Gospel) to others be myself rejected. 20 He stripped off the old human
being with his manner of life and put on the new one which is renewed in
the likeness of his creator, 21 while from day to day he grew and increased in
the fear of God before Mar Narsai’s footstool, for a period of twenty years,

14 The use of Syr. prish, ‘differentiated’ and Syr. dileh, ‘property’, literally ‘that which
belongs to it’, together points to the philosophical background of such language. These are both
important terms in the Syriac version of Porphyry’s Isagoge. See note CS 11.

15 Syr. ihida ’it.

16 I.e. of the spiritual beings. On this term see note LN 30.

17 Syr. usiyas, from Gr. ousia\ Syr. adshd is the equivalent of the Gr. etdos , ‘form’.

18 Syr. muzzaga, which can also be translated as ‘constitution’.

19 Lit. ‘son of man of God’, ‘son of man’ (Syr. bar ’nasha ) being a standard term for the
(male) human being.

20 1 Cor 9:27.

21 Cf. Col 3:9-10; cf. Eph 4:22-4. See the conclusion of the Cause (note CS 558).

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like a leafy tree beautiful in its fruit, [620] which is planted by a stream of
water. 22

Abraham’s Ascetic Way of Life and the Awe He Inspired in Many

After this blessed one died, the glorious one succeeded him and led this
assembly for twenty years. Then the brothers as well as the citizens 23 caused
him trouble and made in his place as teacher Elisha of Bet ‘Arbaye, from
the village of Qozb, 24 a great as well as learned man. 25 He led the assembly
for four years and he also composed many didactic and exegetical writings.
He resolved the charges 26 put forward by the Magi, that is, those who are
against us. Mar Abraham was again given charge to stand in the place of
his master and to fulfil the office of teaching. After this holy one sat on the
seat of teaching, not only because of his instruction, the illumination of his
speech, and the excellence of his manner of life, but also because of the
fear of God which was in him and his great humility, from all regions they
gathered together to come to enjoy even just the sight of him and hear the
living word of teaching from his mouth. Because in little time more than

22 Ps 1:3. Psalm 1 has a special significance here since it can be read, especially in the
Peshitta version, as a programmatic statement on the East-Syrian view of learning. It is also
quoted above in the beginning of the ‘Life of Narsai’ (p. 591). See note CS 239.

23 Syr. bnay mdi(n)td, lit. ‘sons of the city’.

24 Elisha ‘Arbaya bar Qozbaye, or Elisha bar Qozbaye, as he is usually called. In general
and for his works, none of which are extant, see Baumstark, Geschichte, 114-15; Voobus,
History , 122-33. The Ecclesiastical History and the Cause disagree about his tenure of office.
The former states that he led the School for four years in the middle of Abraham of Bet
Rabban’s tenure of office, but the latter places Elisha’s tenure directly after that of Narsai and
says that it lasted seven years (see Cause 387). The Chronicle of Siirt states that Elisha left
Edessa with Narsai and at the request of the patriarch Acacius (485-495/6) composed a treatise
on Christianity for the Sasanian king Kavad I (488-531), which was translated into Persian
{Chronicle of Siirt 2.1.126-27). The Chronicle ofArbela (70.17-19) supports the position of
the Cause, but this text may be a forgery and Mingana, the possible forger, was aware of the
Cause (on this issue see Appendix I). By locating Qozb in Marga, the Chronicle again agrees
with the Cause (or perhaps Mingana’s rendering of it), which neither locates Qozb nor gives
Elisha the appellation “Arbaya’. Voobus suggests that his dates of tenure were from approxi¬
mately 503 to 510, but this is speculative (Voobus, History, 132-33).

25 On this episode, see Voobus, History, 129-32, though his conclusion may be doubted. It
seems more likely that the earlier and more awkward source, that is, the Ecclesiastical History,
is more accurate.

26 The charges (Syr. ze’teme, from Gr. zetema ) possibly reflect an actual debate. In any case,
this corresponds with his apologetic work, written for Kavad I (see note 24 above).

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one thousand brothers had gathered unto him and the prior place of scribes 27
was too narrow, he took the trouble and built another house on the side of
his cell, large and ample, so that it might be easier [621] for them to write
in it and to complete their work. This man wholly imitated the way of life
of his master, not only in fasting and prayer but also in self-denial and
much abstinence, 28 while he abstained completely from eating flesh. His
bed was common, 29 adorned with a blanket of animal fur and composed
of a patchwork of wool. In turn, his vessels for necessities (i.e. his dishes)
were passed on from those who are wise, 30 which consisted of three kinds
of material, some from mud, some wood, and others gourd. His clothing and
his cloak were woven of common wool. For he thought that those who are
humble are among kings, according to the word of the Lord. 31 In sum, that
is to say, the inhabitants of the city clung to such a love for this man that
not only for the believers but also for the pagans and the Jews a secure oath
was deteremined by the invocation of his name and the garments which lay
upon his body were reckoned as a blessed thing by the whole community,
since they experienced great powers performed by means of them, as those
of the Apostles. Numerous times demons, by the mere invocation of his
name, left and went away.

His Work at the School and in Teaching

[622] These are the praiseworthy (deeds) of this holy man, that is, the spiri¬
tual father, who begot many sons from the distraction of error to the truth of
life. This man worked so much in his teaching that not only did he fulfil the
duties 32 of the school as the order 33 demands - and (he worked so much) in

27 Syr. bet maktbane. To use a western Medieval term, this may have been the ‘scriptorium’
of the School. We know that manuscripts were produced there. See the colophon to British
Library Add. 14471 at 108a; LXXVII in Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British
Museum, I: 53-54. On this colophon, see also Becker, Fear of God, 1-4.

28 Syr. nziruta, lit. ‘naziriteship’. The ancient Israelite who took the nazirite vow conse¬
crated himself to the Lord (Num. 6:1-21).

29 It is not clear how the particle tak (from Gr. tdkha), meaning ‘perhaps’, functions here.

30 The verb in this phrase is singular. However, ‘vessels’ is plural. Nau provides an emenda¬
tion suggesting the singular ‘vessel’, but then translates the sentence as plural, leaving out the
phrase: ‘was/were passed on from those who are wise’. It is not clear if this is a reference to
Abraham’s actual reception of dining vessels from prior wise men or if the author is simply
suggesting that such a practice of having mean utensils derives from the wise.

31 Mt 11:8. This is a paraphrase of the biblical verse.

32 Syr. zedqe.

33 The ‘order’ (Syr. taksa, from Gr. taxis) may refer to the canons of the school. However,

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his speech, endowed with adornment and fortified with the truth of ortho¬
doxy, since for many years he preached 34 before the brothers - but also he
wanted to produce this (teaching) 35 in his writings. Because he saw that
the majority of brothers had great difficulty in finding the meaning of the
scriptures from reading the volumes of the exegete, 36 since they were inter¬
woven in Greek and dark from the loftiness of the man’s speech and from
the exegetes who followed after him; on account of this he wrote the greater
part of them down and lucidly provided exegesis for them and, like a diligent
father, adorned a table full of good things 37 and set it before them. Because
he saw that they were pressed in other matters, he did not neglect even these,
but rather he diligently concerned himself with them. When first he built for
them a hospice 38 so that they might not stray in the city and be dispersed
and mocked, as that one who said: Who is sick and I myself am not sick?, 39
he piled up and set therein all kinds of things and he filled it for them with
all the necessities. Three times a day he would visit the sick who were in
it, according to [623] the word of the Lord, which says: I was sick and you

it is possible that this could be translated here as ‘his rank’ or ‘his station’ at the School.

34 Syr. targem , lit. ‘translate’, but here means ‘to produce turgame ’.

35 It is not certain to what the feminine object suffix and demonstrative pronoun ‘this’
refers. It is most likely the ‘teaching’ ( mallphanuta ) mentioned earlier, but the sentence is
convoluted and it could also refer to his ‘speech’ ( mellta ), which is also feminine.

36 ‘The exegete’ ( mphashshqdnd ) is the title commonly used for Theodore of Mopsuestia.
On his influence at the School and in the sixth century in general, see Becker, Fear of God,
113-25 and Becker, ‘The Dynamic Reception of Theodore of Mopsuestia in the Sixth
Century’.

37 A similar metaphor is used in the Cause for Henana of Adiabene’s exegetical learning
(see note CS 526).

38 Syr. ’ksndwkyn (Nau’s emendation of the manuscript’s ’ksdwnkyri), from Gr. xenodo-
cheion. On this passage, see Becker, Fear of God, 79-81. On the xenodocheion in antiquity,
see for example Olivia Constable, Housing the Stranger in the Mediterranean World: Lodging,
Trade, and Travel in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages (Cambridge: Cambridge Univer¬
sity Press, 2003), 35-38. It was not an uncommon institution in the region ( The Chronicle of
Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite, 42^43; see also Trombley and Watt, eds., The Chronicle of Pseudo-
Joshua the Stylite, xlii). It was commonly associated with monasteries ( Syriac and Arabic
Documents, 123-24, Canon XXXVI of the so-called Canons of Maruta). The first of the school
canons of 590 CE is: ‘The host (Syr. aksanadakra, from Gr. xenodochos ) of the xenodocheion
of the school shall carefully provide for the brothers that have become sick, and nothing shall
be lacking in the (things) required for their nourishment and their care’. The canon then lists the
restrictions that are upon him and the punishments imposed for financial infidelity {Statutes of
the School of Nisibis, 92-93). Sick brothers are to be brought to a xenodocheion according to
Canon 11 of the Canons of Abrahma of Kashkar {Statutes of the School of Nisibis, 162).

39 2 Cor 11:29. In the preceding verse Paul refers to his concern for the larger ecclesial
community.

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visited me. 40 After he did these things and seemed to be satisfied for some
time with the satisfaction of the brothers, he saw that they were pressed by
another matter, since they did not have cells. Whatever they produced for
their own sustenance they gave as a fee for their cells, and yet when they
were sick many of them were worn down and constrained (to stay) with
the faithful. How many times were they stripped and made naked! In turn,
it was not easy for them to come and go to the church or the school, since
there were some of them who had cells far away. Again, there were some
for whom it was not easy to come and go because the outer doors were
closed 41 by their landlords lest something be lost. How many times were
they apprehended as thieves and even reviled as well for deeds of fornica¬
tion! For numerous reasons on account of this after the blessed one of the
Lord saw all these things and others like them, he sought a place (to build
in) from Qashwi, 42 the believer and doctor of the king, and when he gave it
to him, he busied himself and built eighty cells at his own expense, and he
divided it into three courts. He built there baths, one for [624] the honour of
the brothers, the second for the expenses of the hospice 43 Because there was
not yet a place from which the reader and the elementary instructor could be
sustained, he bought a village for a thousand staters 44 and ordered that the
proceeds of it go to the teachers, and if there was any surplus from that, it

40 Mt 25:36. Mt 25:31-46 commonly serves as a model for care of the poor and other forms
of euergetism, e.g., Aphrahat, Demonstrations, XX.5 and comments in Adam H. Becker, ‘Anti-
Judaism and Care of the Poor in Aphrahat’s Demonstration 20’, JECS 10.3 (2002): 312-13.

41 Nau translates this word, triqin as ‘closed’. Brockelmann, Lexicon Syriacum, 838, cites
this passage alone for this word, but is uncertain about its accuracy.

42 On Qashwi’s patronage, see Becker, Fear of God, 9-81. Voobus, History, 145, cites Abu’
1-Barakat, Misbah az-zilma. Der Katalog der christlichen Schriften in arabischer Sprache, ed.
W. Riedel (Nachrichten von der konigliche Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Gottingen;
Gottingen, 1902), 652 as another source which mentions Qashwi.

43 On the hospice, see note 38 above. On the introduction of baths to the Sasanian Empire
by Balash and Kavad I, see Trombley and Watt, eds.. The Chronicle of Pseudo-Joshua the
Stylite, 19 and nn.77, 75.

44 Syr. estere, from Gr. stater (Mid. Pers., ster). The Sasanian ster, a multiple variant of the
dirham (Mid. Pers. Drahm), the Sasanian silver unit of currency (orig. Gr. drachme). (Trombley
and Watt, eds.. The Chronicle of Pseudo Joshua the Stylite, 9 n. 35, 11 n. 45; Ph. Gignoux,
‘Dirham, i. In Pre-Islamic Persia’, Encyclopedia Iranica, ed. E. Yarshater [London: Routledge
& Kegan Paul, 1982-]: VII: 425-26). The same amount of money is given to a monastery by
a rich layman during a locust plague in order that the monks may maintain their community
(The Histories of Rabban Hormizd the Persian and Rabban Bat-Tdta, trans. E. A. W. Budge
[2 volumes; London, 1902; repr. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2003], 11, line 958 (p. 153)
(trans. 230); Trombley and Watt, eds., The Chronicle of Pseudo Joshua the Stylite, 39 n. 189).
However, this source is late and therefore not necessarily reliable.

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would go to the hospice of the brothers. These are the pleasing and lovely
fruits of this spiritual athlete, against whom what battles arose, sometimes
from the bishop of the city, at other times from the community of believers,
and at still other times from pagans, 45 now is not the time for us to recount.
I will set down one or two things so that the health of his soul and the aid
our Lord gave him might be known.

Enemy Brothers Accuse Him

At one point evil men from among the brothers, at least in name, accused
him, saying he worshipped idols and sacrificed to the luminaries, because
the holy one had an icon of our Lord and a sign of the cross. When he rose
at the time of the lighting of the lamps 46 he would first liturgically recite
three portions 47 of the Psalter before the icon and then salute the cross.
They spread news about him that the holy icon was an idol. After the matter
was inquired into by the citizens and it was known that this was (merely)
an accusation, they then took refuge [625] in flight and later conceived of
another trick. For the holy one made at the outer door of the court of his
house a barrier, 48 so that animals would not enter therein, since his door was
continually open to everyone. Because he was the first to do this in Nisibis,
according to the custom of the Romans, the wicked ones also spread news
about him throughout the city that this was a trick that he had performed in
order that everyone when entering might bow down in worship to his idol,
saying that it was hidden in the walls across from the door. 49 When believers
came and found that a cross was there across from the entrance of the door,
Satan entered into those accusers to such a point that they said, ‘The idol is

45 The Syr. barraye, lit. ‘outsiders’, is usually translated as ‘pagans’, but it could also
have a less precise valence here and simply refer to people from outside Nisibis or outside the
community of believers as defined by the author. See note CS 290.

46 Syr. la-shrage, lit. ‘for lamps’.

47 Syr. marmyata. A marmita is subdivision of the Psalter. For the East Syrians there are 57
of these. See, e.g., Sebastian Brock, The Bible in the Syriac Tradition (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias
Press, 2006), 141 and also Thomas of Marga, Book of the Governors 1:287 (II: 515, but ignore
n. 2, which confuses the West-Syrian and East-Syrian traditions).

48 The ‘court of his house’ is lit. ‘his court’ ( darteh ), which could also be translated as ‘his
chamber’. The word ‘barrier’, following Nau’s translation, is lit. ‘daughter of a door’ {ba{r)t
tar‘a ). The architectural innovation described here, which the author characterizes as a Roman
custom, is unclear.

49 In the chapter on Theodore of Mopsuestia, pagans try to trick Theodore into adoring
an idol by hiding it in a wall behind the church altar (Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de
Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 507-08)

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hidden behind the cross’. After this was found to be false, one of them plotted
to throw himself into the well of the home of the Rabban, 50 so that once he
was drowned, the old man would be taken prisoner, but this (plot) also did
not remain hidden. Sometimes they slandered him before the marzbdn 51 of
the city as if he were someone who had disrupted the border. Because he did
not inquire into the affair, he sent his son on an embassy to the king in order
to destroy the glorious one. When the divine athlete also heard this, he said:
Judge, Oh Lord, my case and fight with those who fight with me, because
false witnesses have stood against me and spoken injury. 52 After [626] many
faithful were saddened due to this affair, he gave encouragement to them:
The Lord will not abandon those who fear him, but he will demand punish¬
ment of those who distress them , 53 After the emissary went to the king and
completed the will of his father - in word but not in deed - when he arrived
at the Tigris, he drowned right there. He and everything with him was lost.
When his father heard this, on account of the great pain he too died on the
third day. All of his enemies were ashamed and hid their heads.

The Wicked Jews Attack Abraham

Afterwards, Satan incited the evil nation of the Jews, the crucifiers, against
him. Although the whole city was stirred up against them, nevertheless by
taking the hand of 54 the bishop of the time 55 - because they feared the city -
they inclined judgment against the old man, as if he and his students 56 were
the cause of the strife. Although the holy one was sick at the time and was
reaching the point of death due to the intractability of the illness, everyone’s
eyes were nevertheless covered and not one of the faithful served as an aid
to him and they exchanged the truth for falsehood. The Persian authori¬
ties sealed a decree 57 against him and against those found guilty with him.

50 Lit. ‘our great one’. This was a title given to heads of monasteries as well as the head
of the School of Nisibis.

51 See note SL 114.

52 Ps 27:12.

53 Ps 37:28.

54 This is possibly the same form of supplication employed in the wider region to this day.
One takes the hand of another, kisses it, and then presses the kissed hand to the forehead. Such
a submissive gesture makes the one entreated responsible for the one entreating.

55 This is probably Paul II (c. 554-73) (Fiey, Nisibe , 51-55).

56 Syr. talmidawQiy).

57 Nau suggests the emendation of pusqana for pwrsshn ’ in the Ms. This is how I have
translated the text, but it is possible that the emendation is not necessary and that we have the

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After he was made healthy from his illness by the aid of God, he saw that
his kinsmen were fleeing [627] and hiding, all the brothers were scattered,
and the school was idle, and he learned the cause of this matter, then he
said, ‘All of them have abandoned me. Let this not be reckoned unto them. 5 *
But our Lord will arise and aid me as he always does.’ What then did the
father of blessings do? As soon as he heard (this) he asked God in prayer,
as the old man Jacob did, and he found favour before the king and all of
his administration, 59 and not only did he destroy this decree, 60 but also he
gained from then onward great honours, from the king and likewise from
his grandees, and his secret enemies and manifest despisers were ashamed.
He re-established the school as it was before. Satan stirred up these affairs
and many more than these against him.

Abraham’s Sturdiness and Defence of the Doctors of the Church 61

On the one hand, the foot of his thought did not slip from the correct confes¬
sion of the true faith even in one of these affairs. On the other hand, if there
was one of the brothers whose thought was weakened from the goal of
orthodoxy due to one of these causes, 62 he bravely battled until he turned
his thought from that distraction of error, while he himself endured all
pains on his behalf, in order that he might possess a perfect human being,
according to the word of the blessed Paul, and as that one who said this:
Who is it who stumbles and I am not burdened? 65 so that because of this the
Roman people had a great hatred against him [628], whether the followers

Mid. Pers. word, pursishn, meaning ‘question’, which is cognate with the standard word for ‘to
ask’, pursTdan. This word can be used for questions pertaining to religion, see Henrik Samuel
Nyberg, A Manual ofPahlavi, Part II: Glossary (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1974), 163.

58 2 Tim 4:16. The postpositive particle lam makes explicit that this is a quotation. This line
derives from (Pseudo-)Paul’s description of the opposition he met in his ministry.

59 Syr. pwlwty ’ (voc. pawlawteya ’), from Gr. politeia.

60 See note 57 above.

61 In view of the content of the Ecclesiastical History as a whole, it is appropriate that the
last chapter should end with the hero defending the three most important fathers of the Church
of the East, figures who play an important role in the Ecclesiastical History as a whole. See
Narsai’s defence of these three, ‘Homelie de Narses sur les Trois Docteurs Nestoriens’, ed. and
trans. F. Martin, JA 9e ser, 14 (1899): 446-92; 15 (1900): 469-525 and the discussion of this
text in Kathleen McVey, ‘The Memra of Narsai on the Three Nestorian Doctors as an example
of forensic rhetoric’, in Symposium Syriacum III, 87-96.

62 This word can also be translated as ‘pretexts’, i.e. the false accusations made against
him.

63 2 Cor 11:29.

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of the council or the Syrians. 64 After they suppressed every honour that the
Church of Nisibis and also the holy one had at that time from the Church
of Antioch for this reason, that is, that perhaps - so they said - stooping
low on account of this he would abandon his confession and hold onto
theirs, what then did God’s chosen one do? He took care not only to guard
the true faith without blemish but also to order that the name of those who
openly announced it be announced in the book of life, I mean, Diodore,
Theodore, and Nestorius, the vigorous athletes, these men who despised all
worldly honours and possessed their confession by their own labour. After
his enemies learned that he did this and that he did not want to veer off into
heresy, 65 they entreated Caesar to demand (from him) an apology 66 in public
speech for his confession, and that he (i.e. Abraham) produce a response
to the questions springing up against him. 67 After he was asked by Caesar
to ascend to him and produce a response to these (questions) and he was
unable to do this, first because of his great old age and then because of the
labour of his teaching, which he was maintaining, he produced in writings
what was appropriate and sent them the teaching of his confession. In turn,
he provided an apology for the questions which he was asked. 68 After they
failed in this, [629] then they said to him, ‘Remove Theodore and Nestorius
from the Church and we will agree with you and the whole church will be
one and of one mind’. Then he said to them, ‘Is it that the names of these
holy ones are loathed by you, oh wondrous ones? or their confession?’ They
quickly responded, ‘Both of them. Their names as well as their confession.’
When he heard this, the holy one was furious at them and said to them,
‘Oh evil ones more evil than all! If this is true, then you are far from the
whole truth. For “Theodore” means “Gift of God”, “Nestorius” means “Son

64 The phrase ‘followers of the council’ is a rendering of Syr. sunhadiqe (from Gr.
sunodikos), lit. ‘synodists’. These are Chalcedonians, ‘the synod’ being the Council of
Chalcedon of 451. The ‘Syrians’ are Miaphysites. This geographical designation points to the
perceived dominance of Miaphysitism (later, the Syrian Orthodox or West Syrians) in Syria
at the time.

65 Syr. haratiquta, deriving from Gr. hairetikos.

66 Syr. mcippaq b-ruha.

67 Nisibis was not under the jurisdiction of Rome and so it is peculiar that Abraham should
be asked to defend his theology before Caesar, that is, Justinian. This episode and the following
one seem to reflect the theological discussions that occurred in Constantinople in the 530s
and 540s in the period leading up to the Fifth Ecumenical Council in 553. See, for example,
Sebastian Brock, ‘The Conversations with the Syrian Orthodox under Justinian (532)’, OCP
47 (1981): 87-121 (repr. in Brock, Studies in Syriac Christianity , Chap. 13).

68 Again, Syr. ze’teme, from Gr. zetema, see note 26 above.

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of the Fast”. 69 If these names are hateful to you, you are showing about
yourselves that you do not love the gift of God nor are you fond of the fast
of God. How could we intermingle ourselves with people who maintain
this? If, in turn, their confession is loathed by you, it is clear that you do not
confess the trinity nor do you believe in the primary reception (of nature)
from us. 70 For these men maintain and confess thus. You are foreign to the
whole truth.’ After they had no response to these things, they said to him,
‘We do not know what benefit there is from the remembrance of the names
of these men to whom you cling in this way. But against insult and abuses
you have separated yourself from the whole community.’ The holy one also
[630] answered them regarding these things, ‘The rejection of their names
is a certain denial of their confession. But if we deny their confession, we
remove ourselves from the whole truth, as you yourselves do.’ After these
things he sent Paul the bishop 71 and others with him and they went before
Caesar and apologized for the confession that they maintained and for the
fathers whom they proclaimed. They then came from there with much
glory.

69 Of these two etymologies, the first is accurate, while the second makes the mistake of
deriving the name Nestor (with a short e) from nesteuein , meaning ‘to fast’. That the etymology
of their names should have significance points to the tendency within Syriac Christian thought
to maintain an inherent and essential connection between signifier and signified.

70 Syr. nsibuta reshayta d-menan. Syr. nsibuta , lit. ‘taking’, is the standard term for God’s
taking up of human nature in the incarnation, for example, in the Christological writings attrib¬
uted to Michael the Intrepreter, a member of the School in the late sixth century, Abramowski
and Goodman, Nestorian Christological Texts, 110.4 (64.2). On Michael, see Abramowski, ‘Zu
den Schriften des Michael Malpana/Badoqa’, 1-10 and Becker, Fear of God, 95-96.

71 It is irregular that the head of a school should have the authority to send the bishop as
an emissary. Even more odd is the fact that the bishop is being sent to the Roman Emperor, to
whom he owes no allegiance. This is the same bishop Paul mentioned in note 55 above. Perhaps
it is at this time that another Paul, a teacher at the School, introduced Junillus Africanus,
Quaestor Sacri Palatii in the court of Justinian, to the exegesis of the School of Nisibis, a
meeting which would later influence Cassiodorus (d. 585) and from him the Medieval Latin
tradition of monastic learning. See Michael Maas, Exegesis and Empire in the Early Byzantine
Mediterranean: Junillus Africanus and the Instituta Regularia Divinae Legis (Studies and Texts
in Antiquity and Christianity 17; Tubingen, 2003) and Becker, ‘The Dynamic Reception of
Theodore of Mopsuestia in the Sixth Century’.

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Conclusion

This blessed one maintained such a love of orthodoxy and his friends that he
would endure and bear all torments on behalf of it (i.e. orthodoxy). He led the
assembly for a period of sixty years, with great vigil night and day. 72 Neither
completely nor quickly would he grow weary from didactic discourse, 73
but in all the school seasons he led them carefully according to their rule. 74
After he led his life with all ranks and stations according to their measure,
according to the purpose of the providence of the Messiah, his life lasted a
period of one hundred and twenty years. 75 His eyes did not become heavy
nor did his cheeks contract nor was the polished composition of his speech
spoiled. In the end he was gathered unto his fathers in peace, as a sunrise
[631 ] that happens in its time. This is the cause 76 of the glorious deeds of the
holy one. When his teaching quickly flew to the four corners (of the world)
in the likeness of the rays of the sun and the whole of Persia was illuminated
by his confession, he completed and fulfilled everything according to the
will of God, and like unto the blessed Abraham, the first of the fathers, 77 he
revealed and explained all secrets and hidden mysteries of that praiseworthy
providence, and with confidence 78 and a loud voice he announced it in all the
inhabited world 79 with the aid of the Messiah. To Him and to his Father and
to the Holy Spirit be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

The story of Mar Abraham, the presbyter and exegete of the divine scrip¬
tures, is completed.

72 The Cause (p. 389) also says that his tenure of office lasted sixty years.

73 Syr. mellta d-mallphanuta , lit. ‘word’ or ‘speech of teaching’.

74 The Syriac word taksa (Gr. taxis) can refer to the actual ‘rule’ of the School, that is, its
canons, or it could be the ‘station’ or ‘rank’ of those Abraham was leading.

75 Gen 6:3 limits the human life span to one hundred and twenty years, though some
persons, such as Sarah and Abraham, live beyond this limit.

76 This use of the word ‘cause’ (Syr. ‘ellta) points to the extended meaning it took on in the
sixth century to refer both to a literary genre and a general interest in etiology.

77 Lit. ‘head of the fathers’. For the same expression, see note SL 5 and note CS 518.

78 Syr. galyut appe, lit. ‘revealing of the face’.

79 Syr. ‘amarta, ellipsis for ar‘a ‘amarta, ‘the habitable earth’, a caique reflecting the
Greek oikoumene.

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BARHADBESHABBA, THE CAUSE OF
THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

INTRODUCTION

This fascinating, at times bizarre, text serves as an exemplar of the pedagog¬
ical understanding of Christianity that we find at the School of Nisibis and
in the East-Syrian school movement in general. 1 Composed in the late
sixth century, the Cause is written in the form of a speech addressing the
incoming class at the School of Nisibis and, although it discusses a number
of issues such as epistemology, psychology, cosmology, and the ineffable
nature of God, it primarily recasts the history of the world as a long series
of schools. The text traces out the course of cosmic history from the school
God established for the angels at the time of creation up to the time of the
controversial late sixth-century director of the School of Nisibis, Henana of
Adiabene (d. before 612). Although the Cause is a key text for the recon¬
struction of the history and culture of the School of Nisibis, only recently
have scholars begun to go beyond using the text simply as a source for the
chronological history of the School. 2

Since the text is long and sometimes obscure, I will provide a basic
summary of the whole. 3 The Cause purports to be a speech given to the

1 The Cause has a confusing manuscript tradition, in part because a number of the
manuscripts were perhaps lost forever during the genocide of 1915.1 have therefore relegated
a discussion of the manuscripts to an appendix at the end of this volume (Appendix I). For a
detailed discussion of the Cause, see Becker, Fear of God, much of which is a close analysis
and contextualization of the text.

2 Reinink, ‘Edessa Grew Dim and Nisibis Shone Forth’; Ilaria Ramelli, ‘Linee introdut-
tive a Barhadbshabba di Halwan, Causa della fondazione delle Scuole. Filosofia e storia della
filosofia greca e cristiana in Barhadbshabba’, ’Ilu. Revista de Ciencias de lasReligiones (Madrid,
Universidad Complutense) 9 (2004): 127-81, and eadem, ‘Barhadbeshabba di Halwan, Causa
della fondazione delle scuole : traduzione e note essenziali’; Theresia Hainthaler, ‘Die verschie-
denen Schulen, durch die Gott die Menschen lehren wollte. Bemerkungen zur ostsyrischen
Schulbewegung’, in Martin Tamcke, ed., Syriaca II. Beitrage zum 3. deutschen Syrologen-
Symposium in Vierzehnheiligen 2002 (Studien zur Orientalischen Kirchengeschichte 33;
Hamburg, 2004), 175-92. Earlier use of the text for chronology can be found in Voobus’s
History and T. Hermann, ‘Die Schule von Nisibis vom 5. bis 7. Jahrhundert’.

3 The following summary derives from Becker, Fear of God, 98-100

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

incoming students at the School of Nisibis. The speaker regularly refers to
himself in the first person and employs a rhetorical self-presentation typical
of Syriac literary texts, particularly those which display the influence of a
Greek rhetorical style. 4 Accordingly, the author employs a large number of
Greek words.

The text begins with a discussion of the goodness, wisdom, and power
of God. 5 The speaker then describes God’s grace towards himself and the
assembly, and refers to the future mission of the students. 6 There follows a
discussion on the nature of God and on the human capacity to learn about
him. God is prior in existence to the rest of creation, 7 and on account of this
he would be epistemologically inaccessible to us if he had not graciously
permitted himself to be known. 8 He does this through the various distinc¬
tions which exist in nature; these distinctions, when lined up side by side,
form a chain of being that connects all entities, including God himself, to
each other and allows us to compare them. In this way God allows himself to
be spoken about by us with terms that also apply to the natural world. 9 The
tools we employ to decipher the creator through his creation are the human
soul and the mind within it, the workings of which the author describes in
detail. The human soul is like a lamp and the mind within it is illuminated
by the divine light. 10 In relation to the other aspects of the human being the
mind is as a captain on a ship, 11 guiding us while aiming at perfection of both
intelligence and action and at its own purification. 12 The world we live in
was created in order that the rationality of the mind might be able to decipher
order from the diversity of creation and from this infer God the creator. 13

The higher beings, the angels, maintain their existence above this world. 14
Humans, who have the ability to ascend to and descend from these heights, are
also given authority over creation, 15 but humanity fell because of the deceiver. 16

4 For an excellent discussion of the development of Syriac rhetoric, see Riad, Studies in
the Syriac Preface.

5 Cause 327.1—330.5

6 Ibid. 330.6-333.7

7 Ibid. 333.8-334.15.

8 Ibid. 335.1-337.6

9 Ibid. 337.7-

339.14

Ibid.

340.1-

-341.7

Ibid.

341.8-

-342.11

Ibid.

342.12-344.7

Ibid.

344.8-

-345.6

Ibid.

345.7-

-345.14

Ibid.

346.1-

-347.9

Ibid.

347.10-348.3

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88 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

The creation of the world in six days was a lesson for the angels to learn about
the creator and serves as a model for all inferential learning about God in this
world. 17 There are two types of angelic students: the lazy and the diligent.
In what may be a subtle warning to the speech’s audience of students who
have newly arrived at the School, the text tells us how the lazy angels began
to complain when God commanded them to pay honour to human beings
and how on account of this they were beaten by their master and cast out of
the school of heaven. In contrast, the diligent angels were given different
positions within the celestial hierarchy. 18

After describing the angelic classroom of creation, the Cause relates
the long history of human schools, which began when God established a
school for Adam in the Garden of Eden. Adam erases the law from the
tablet he is given and is ejected from school. 19 The schools where Cain and
Abel, Noah, and Abraham studied then follow. 20 When God makes Moses
the Steward ( rabbayta) of the ‘great school of perfect philosophy’, 21 humans
are no longer just pupils but begin to be instructors in their own schools. 22
Joshua receives this school from Moses; later, Solomon and the prophets
have their own schools as well. 23

The Cause then describes the schools of the different Greek philoso¬
phers, of the Zoroastrians, and of others who failed in their attempt to imitate
the schools previously established by God. 24 After this period of decline,
Jesus came and ‘renewed the first school of his father’. 25 He ‘made John the
Baptist a Reader and Interpreter ( maqrydnd w-badoqa ) and the apostle Peter
the Steward (rabbayta)’. 26 The Cause goes on to describe the schools of
Paul and the Apostles; 27 the school of Alexandria, where scripture was first
interpreted; 28 the various post-Nicene schools, including that of Theodore
of Mopsuestia; 29 the School of Edessa until its closure; 30 and finally the

17 Ibid. 348.4-350.5. This passage is discussed in detail in Becker, Fear of God, 113-54.

18 Ibid. 350.6-352.4

19 Ibid. 352.5-354.5

20 Ibid. 354.6-356.5

21 Ibid. 356.6

22 Ibid. 356.6-359.12

23 Ibid. 359.13-362.12

24 Ibid. 362.13-367.9

25 Ibid. 367.10

26 Ibid. 367.13-368.1

27 Ibid. 373.3-374.12

28 Ibid. 375.1-376.9

29 Ibid. 376.10-381.4

30 Ibid. 381.5-383.14

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

foundation and the different heads of the School of Nisibis. 31 The text then
addresses the origins of the School of Nisibis’s semester system 32 and ends
with an exhortation to the students to work hard at the school 33 and an
admonition to avoid contact with Satan, who would lead them astray. 34

If we divide the Cause into sections based upon rhetorical transitions
and changes in content, we come up with seven parts of unequal length. The
following is a schematic outline of the text based upon these seven parts,
divided into the subsection titles I have added to the translation below.

Pages in the Scher Edition

1) An introductory discussion on the grace of God, who makes all things
possible 35

Preface: goodness, wisdom, power 327-30

God’s grace towards the speaker and the assembly 330-33

2) A philosophical discussion of God’s nature, his angelic pupils, and the

creation of man 36

God’s priority in existence 333-34

God’s epistemological inaccessibility 335-37

Distinctions and learning 337-39

Divine illumination 340-41

Mind as captain and the purification of the faculties 341-42

Perfection of intelligence and action 342-44

Reason for corporeal creation 344-45

Angelic activity above 345

The human capacity to traverse the firmament to heaven

and back, and the human authority over creation 346-47

Human fall due to the deceiver 347-48

Creation as reading lesson 348-50

Lazy angels cast from heaven 350-51

Diligent angels 351-52

3) A ‘scholastic’ history running from Adam to the prophets 37

Human schools 352

31 Ibid. 384.1-393.3

32 Ibid. 393.4-394.13

33 Ibid. 395.1-396.8

34 Ibid. 396.9-397.2

35 Ibid. 327.1-333.7.

36 Ibid. 333.8-352.4.

37 Ibid. 352.5-362.12.

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90 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

The school of Adam 352-54

Cain and Abel 354

Noah 355

Abraham 355-56

Moses 356-59

Joshua 359-60

Solomon 360-62

Prophets 362

4) Pagan teachers’ poor attempts at the imitation of their predecessors 38

Pagan schools 362-67

5) Renewal of the original school under Jesus and the succession of schools
up to the time of Theodore of Mopsuestia 39

Jesus the master teacher 367-73

The Apostle Paul 373-74

The post-Apostolic schools 375

The School of Alexandria and Philo of Alexandria 375-76

Arius of Alexandria and the Council of Nicaea 376

Post-Nicene schools 377

School of Diodore of Tarsus 377-78

Theodore of Mopsuestia 378-81

6) The school in Edessa, its closure and the move to Nisibis, followed by the
various heads of the school at Nisibis 40

The School in Edessa and removal to Persia 381-82

Qyora 382-83

Narsai 383-87

Elisha bar Qozbaye 387

Abraham and John of Bet Rabban 387-89

Isho'yahb of Arzon 389-90

Abraham of Nisibis 390

Henana of Adiabene 390-93

7) A description of the school year, and an exhortation and admonition to
the students 41

38 Ibid. 362.13-367.9.

39 Ibid. 367.10-381.4.

40 Ibid. 381.5-393.3.

41 Ibid. 393.4-397.2.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 91

The division of the sessions

Exhortation

Conclusion

393- 94

394- 96
396-97

The Cause can be understood as working within or at least influenced by
several different literary genres or modes. 42 The text benefits from compar¬
ison with Greek protreptic, collective biography, and the chains of trans¬
mission found in philosophical, medical, Rabbinic, and patristic literature.
More significantly, it seems to be a scholastic historical subgenre of the
East-Syrian ‘cause’ genre. The ‘cause’ genre, or the ‘ellta in Syriac, meaning
‘cause’, is a scholastic genre well attested from the sixth century onwards.
Most instances of this genre are aetiological discussions of East-Syrian
festival days. This bears significantly on how we understand the subgenre
of scholastic history, the one extant example of which is the Cause. It seems
that the school session was treated as having the same calendrical signifi¬
cance as other Christian holidays and thus the existence of this subgenre
points to a sacralization of the period of study at the School.

The Cause has a diverse intellectual pedigree and bears the traces of the
various texts and ideas that could have been found at the School. Many of
the theological, ethical, and exegetical interests of Theodore of Mopsuestia
play themselves out in the ‘cause’ literature, and these and an obvious adher¬
ence to a number of Theodore’s ideas can be found in the Cause. 43 Theodore
had become the theological and exegetical authority in the Church of the
East by the late sixth century and, despite a greater diversity in their thinking
and exegesis than the East Syrians themselves would have cared to admit,
his work remained foundational for them. The theology of the Cause corre¬
sponds with what we find in Theodore’s works, but it also fits with a general
Antiochene ethical focus on freewill and the imitation of Christ in order to
restore the prelapsarian man, as opposed to the Alexandrian emphasis on
Eucharistic communion. 44

The other major influence on the Cause is Greek philosophical thought
as mediated to Nisibis through translations of the monastic texts of
Evagrius of Pontus (d. 399) and Aristotle’s early logical works, as well as
later Neoplatonic commentaries. 45 The Origenist literature of Evagrius of

42 On the genre of the Cause, see Becker, Fear of God, 98-112.

43 Becker, Fear of God, 113-25.

44 E.g., D. S. Wallace-Hadrill, Christian Antioch: A Study of Early Christian Thought in
the East (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982), 125.

45 Becker, Fear of God, 126-54.

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92 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Pontus had an immense and controversial impact on East-Syrian monastic
spirituality. 46 Hints of Evagrius’ thought can even be found in the Ecclesi¬
astical History and it is clearly attested in the Cause. In his systematized
and further developed version of the highly Platonic spirituality of Origen
of Alexandria (d. c. 251), Evagrius provided a corresponding system of
kataphatic and apophatic theology. By ‘kataphatic’ I mean a theology that
allows for affirmations about the divine nature, as opposed to an ‘apophatic’
one, which emphasizes the unknowability of the divine nature and, there¬
fore, refuses to make positive assertions about it. As I argue elsewhere, we
may understand the differences in epistemology between the East-Syrian
schools and monasteries, the former emphasizing a kataphatic theology, the
latter an apophatic one, as reflecting the hierarchy of epistemologies we find
in Evagrius’ oeuvre. 47 The kataphatic emphasis of the schools helps explain
their heavy reliance on the Neoplatonic commentary tradition on Aristotle’s
logical works: the Aristotelian Organon is about speech, that tool which
allows us to make claims about the world as well as about the characteristics
of the divine 48 As an example of the influence on the Cause of the Neopla-
tonists of the late fifth and early sixth centuries, I have included a discussion
of the version of the so-called Tree of Porphyry we find in the Cause at the
end of this volume (Appendix II).

The Cause relies on other sources as well. One possible source, which
seems to have been interpolated into the text, is a doxographical document,
which lists the views concerning the divine held by various philosophical
schools as well as by Zoroastrians. 49 Such doxographical interpolations were
apparently not uncommon in contemporary literature. 50 We also find the influ¬
ence of other patristic literature. For example, a reference to Philo of Alexan¬
dria in the Cause seems to derive from Theodore’s ‘Against Allegorists’. 51

46 E.g., Guillaumont, Les ‘kephalaia gnostica’ d’Evagre le Pontique et Vhistoire de
Vorigenisme chez les grecs et chez les syriens (Paris: Editions du Seuil, 1962). See discussion
in Antoine Guillaumont, ‘Les versions syriaques de 1’oeuvre d’Evagre le Pontique et leur role
dans la formation du vocabulaire ascetique syriaque’, in Symposium Syriacum III, 35—41.

47 E.g, Becker, Fear of God, 174-78.

48 The Organon (lit. ‘tool’) is the common appellation for Aristotle’s Categories, De Inter¬
pretation, and Prior Analytics 1.1—7.

49 Cause 363.7-367.2.

50 e.g., Eznik of Kolb, On God, trans. M. J. Blanchard and R. Darling Young (Eastern
Christian Texts in Translation; Louvain: Peeters, 1998), 293-97.

51 Cause 375.12. Note the attempt in the manuscript tradition to turn ‘Philo the Jew
(yuddydy into ‘Philo the Believer (mawdydf . See note CS 420 below on this passage and its
possible source.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

Further inquiry may uncover traces of other translations of Greek patristic
material employed by the author, such as the exegetical writings of Diodore
of Tarsus (e.g., the text at one point even demonstrates knowledge of West-
Syrian patristic literature by citing Philoxenus of Mabbug as a source). 52
One problem in discerning the Cause’s sources is that what might seem
to come from the Syriac version of Theodore of Mopsuestia’s works may
derive from some intermediary, such as Narsai, who incorporates much of
Theodore’s thought into his own metrical homilies (memre). 53

52 Cause 380.5.

53 Narsai, Homilies on Creation , 470-95.

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94 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS:
TRANSLATION AND NOTES

The Cause of the Foundation of the Schools , 1 which was composed by
Mar Barhadbeshabba of Bet ‘Arbaye , 2 Bishop of Hulwan 1

Preface: Goodness, Wisdom, Power

Preface 4

[327] Wise architects set a firm stone in the foundation of their building so
that it will fit and support the whole structure. Yet also for the wise archi¬
tects of the fear of God 5 in the foundation of their building it is proper that
the first stone of their speech be thanksgiving 6 to the creator. 7 The second
foundation 8 after the first is his inscrutable wisdom; 9 the third then is his
invincible power. Everyone who has these three (attributes) 10 is not impeded
from what is properly his. 11

1 The title, ’elltd da-sydm mawtba d-eskole, is better rendered as ‘The Cause of the Estab¬
lishment of the Session of the Schools’. I have preserved the traditional rendering to avoid
confusion. See discussion of the title at Becker, Fear of God, 104-05.

2 Syr. ‘arbaya, i.e. from Bet ‘Arbaye, or Arabistan. See discussion of the author in the
introduction.

3 This title appears in manuscript T and the following text up to 333.7 is found only in T.
See discussion of manuscripts in Appendix I.

4 Syr. mappaq b-ruha. On this term, see Riad, Studies in the Syriac Preface, 179-82.

5 This expression is often translated as ‘religion’. It represents the Greek theosebeia
from which it most likely derives. Its opposite is often dehlat ptakre, lit. ‘fear of idols’, i.e.
‘idolatry’.

6 qubbal taybuteh, lit. ‘acceptance of his grace’. By analogy it seems the author draws an
etymological connection between ‘grace’ ( taybuta ) and ‘goodness’ ( tdbuta ) in the following
paragraphs.

7 This second sentence begins with the same structure as the preceding one. The reader is
thus led to believe that it will conclude in the same way, but then there is a grammatical shift,
which provides an elegant rhetorical touch.

8 Instead of the Syr. shete’std employed above, the word for ‘foundation’ here is dumsa,
‘house, building, foundation, structure’, from the Latin domus.

9 Cf. Rom 11:33 and Eph 3:8.

10 Lit. ‘is in/with these things’.

11 Lit. ‘that which is his’, but the Syriac dil often contains the philosophical sense of
‘property’ ( dilayta ) since it is used to render the Greek idion. However, this passage may also
reflect Theodore of Mopsuestia’s notion of the divine ‘characteristics’ (Gr. prosonta ), e.g. F.
Petit, ‘L’homme cree “a 1’image” de dieu. Quelques fragments grecs inedits de Theodore de
Mopsueste’, LM 100 (1987): 278f.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

But regarding the nature of rational beings, 12 although it was deemed
worthy of the magnitude of (God’s) grace, [328] nevertheless these (attri¬
butes) are not fully grown 13 for it (i.e. that nature) nor are these things,
which it promises, secure. For its goodness, because it is accidental, 14 is
impeded by evil, its wisdom, because it is learned, is brought to naught by
foolishness, and its power, because it is weak and temporary, is impeded
by weakness. For it is necessary 15 that according to the tree also its fruit
and according to the nature also the properties of the nature 16 . . . mutable
also temporal things. 17 Even those things which it (i.e. the nature of rational
beings) promises are diverse and mutable. 18

But regarding the creator of times and changes, 19 not one of these
weaknesses that are among us impedes him. For his goodness can be known
from the fact that we ourselves did not seek from him that he bring us into
being, as the testimony of scripture which says: The world will be built on
grace. 20 And again: The earth is full of the Lord’s grace. 21 And again: The
earth, Lord, is full of your mercy. 22 Countless are these (passages) that tell
of his graces towards us.

12 Throughout this text the Syriac mlile reflects the Gr. logikoi, of which it at times seems
to be a translation. Similarly mellta representing logos is translated here sometimes as ‘speech’
and at other times as ‘reason’.

13 Syr. mshamlyata, ‘complete, of full growth, mature’.

14 The Syriac ‘aloltd literally means ‘brought in’ or ‘introduced’, but here it has this
technical meaning.

15 Syr. ananqe, from Gr. andnke.

16 Or ‘natural properties’, Syr. dilayateh da-kydnd.

17 Scher supplies the emendation wa-lphut zabna, ‘and according to time’, making the
line in full: ‘according to time, which is mutable, are temporal things’ (note 1). Sebastian
Brock suggests the simpler: d-itaw(hy), rendering this: ‘the nature, which is mutable and
temporary’.

18 This focus on the ‘diverse’ ( mshahlphata ) or ‘changing’ aspect of creation reflects the
interests of Theodore of Mopsuestia, for whom the problem of humanity’s changeable nature
is central (Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commentary on the Nicene Creed , 121 [21]). This concern
with diversity also fits with the Aristotelian physics popular in Neoplatonic circles.

19 Time and change are closely related concepts in Aristotelian phsyics. For example,
according to the Physics, time is an abstraction of the rate of change (see the discussion of
time at 217b29-224al7).

20 Ps 89:3.

21 Ps 33:5.

22 Ps 119:64.

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96 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Concerning the scrutiny of his inscrutable wisdom 23 his chosen vessel 24
Saint Paul says with wonder: Oh the depth of wealth and the wisdom and
the mind of God. 25 [329] And again: It is he alone who is wise. 26 And again:
He has given wisdom to the wise and mind to those who are practised in
understanding. 21 And again: Who is a counsellor to him? 2i

Concerning the magnitude of his invincible power, who is it that will say
that he is impeded from what is properly his? And again: The Lord made the
earth with his power. 29 And again: He gives power to the weary. And again:
Who is powerful like you‘T° And there are many other (passages) that are
indicative of his invincible power.

However, regarding the nature of rational and created beings, these three
things impede it from completing the good: evil, ignorance, and weakness.
But regarding God, not one of these things impede (him), as we have shown
from the divine scriptures. Because of this it is also right for us to observe
carefully these (attributes) of God and whatsoever seems to be troublesome
to us let us cast from our mind, 31 while we scrutinize these (attributes) of
God, by whose grace without request 32 ... us into being and with his wisdom
he has provided for our construction 33 that it be double: one of mortality,

23 The two cognate terms, ‘uqqaba and la met‘aqbdnita (‘scrutiny’ and ‘inscrutable’),
come from the root ‘-q-b, which is commonly used for intellectual inquiry into the nature
of the divine, e.g. Henana, On Golden Friday, 53.6, see also 55.5; On Rogations, 68.5. Such
activity can often have a decidedly negative valence in earlier authors such as Ephrem and
Jacob of Sarug (e.g. Brock, Luminous Eye, 26). Such anxieties about inquiry into the divine
also appear in Greek patristic literature translated in the fifth and sixth centuries, e.g., British
Library Add. 14567, a sixth-century manuscript containing John Chrysostom’s On the Incom¬
prehensibility of God', see F. Graffin and A-M. Malingrey, ‘La tradition syriaque des homelies
de Jean Chrysostome sur l’incomprehensibilite de Dieu’, in Epektasis: Melanges J. Danielou,
ed. J. Fontaine and C. Kannengiesser (Paris: Beauschesne, 1972), 603-09.

24 Acts 9:15.

25 Rom 11:33.

26 Rom 16:27.

27 Dan 2:21. Syr. ydd ‘ay sukkala, lit. ‘knowers of understanding’ (cf. Payne Smith, Compen¬
dious Syriac Dictionary, 187). This line is also quoted at Ishai, On the Martyrs, 18.3-4.

28 Dan 11:34.

29 Jer 10:12.

30 Ps 89:8. This may also be translated: ‘Who is like you. Powerful One?’

31 Syr. re‘yanan. It is not always clear why one term for ‘mind’ is employed as opposed
to another in this text.

32 There is a lacuna in manuscript T and Scher suggests the emendation ‘he brought’ (ayti)
(note 1).

33 Or ‘structure’, Syr. tuqqanan. The Syr. tuqqana represents Gr. katdstasis, a term employed
by Theodore of Mopsuestia to discuss the two worlds or states ( katastaseis ) of human existence

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

which suits those in need and pupils, and the other, belonging to the perfect,
is one which suits the delight of the righteous. 34 However, by his grace he
willed and by his wisdom he provided, his able power then completed and
fulfilled. We receive a demonstration of these (attributes) of God from this
[330] world. Just as he brought us into being, he will resurrect us by his grace
and in his wisdom he will transfer us from here to there. 35 Nothing impeded
that power in the first (instruction); nor also is he impeded by anything in
our second instruction. 36 Because of this, it is proper to observe carefully
these (attributes) of God with a sound knowledge and a firm mind, 37 and let
us reckon as beneficial all the things which are done by him.

God’s Grace towards the Speaker and the Assembly

But I myself, due to the weakness of my body which is tormented continu¬
ally by different pains and sicknesses, would not have been able to speak
with you even for one day, if that God who is acquainted with your eagerness
and love for him - because of whom you left your homelands and parents,
and, to put it briefly, scorned all the pleasure of this world, and loved and
cherished this spiritual intercourse, which is the illuminator of souls and the
place of salt for those who have lost the flavour of the taste of truth and the
heavenly nourishment, and you have taken upon yourselves homelessness, 38

(Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commentary on the Nicene Creed, passim', cf. PG 66.633c-634a). It
is found in Narsai’s metrical homilies (Narsai, Homilies on Creation, 1.83-104).

34 That the former human status in the world is a training ground for the latter is a common¬
place in East-Syrian literature. ‘Accordingly, [because] that provider of our salvation, God our
Lord, considered our lack of training and, at the same time too, the harm that would be procured
for us from those reason[s] that the discourse has indicated, like a compassionate father who
considers the imperfection of his children and does not put them in charge over his posses¬
sions before the time that is proper, he first arranged for us that we should live [as] in a sort of
training-place in the school of this world {b-bet durrasha medem b-eskolaw(hy) d- ‘alma hand),
full of sufferings and wearisome with adversities, so that in it, at least, we might be taught as
[in] a sort of gymnasium ( netyallaph a(y)k da-d-bet agona), and, from the contrarieties with
which it abounds, we might distinguish good from evil; and (only) then, after we had been
disciplined as much as was proper and the choice of the good had been known to us, did he
make ready to give us [that] world to come, which is exempt from all contradiction and in which
there reigns perpetual life without end.’ Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 122.9-21 (trans.
107); see also 9.1-27 (trans. 8) (note on line 19 bet nuppaqa).

35 I.e. from this world to the next.

36 Syr. yullphana. The first instruction is that which God gives by the very act of creation.
For God’s creation of an entity demonstrates his own existence, as can be seen below with the
instruction of the angels at 348.4ff.

37 Syr. hawna.

38 Syr. aksenya, from Gr. xenia.

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bufferings, poundings, deprivations, labours, and toils, vigil and wakeful¬
ness at all times towards the divine scriptures - if he in his grace had not
empowered and helped me, 39 not because I was worthy, but so that you might
not rest and your labour not be empty. For the divine grace is wont to do this.
For it is the cause [331 ] of the construction 40 of the world and of our first
creation. 41 For no one 42 asked God to create the created entities, except for
his grace and mercy. He made known and revealed his grace especially in his
words to us, in the honour that he has given us in his providence for us, in his
care for us, in his forgiveness of our follies and sins. When 43 we were found
to continually be wrong-doers and provokers unto anger, he in his patience
lifted us and bore us with life-giving laws that from generation to generation
have been established for our benefit, especially the one which was given to
the Israelite people through the blessed Moses, so that they might acquire
love for God and neighbour and distance themselves from the worship of
idols, and confess him who alone is the true God, existing for ever. 44

After all these things that great, glorious, and ineffable thing was also

39 The speaker’s boast of suffering and God’s aid helping him to endure employs a typical
Pauline rhetoric. It is commonplace in the ‘cause’ genre for the speaker to engage in the Classical
rhetorical claim of being unable to complete the task at hand and being audacious even to try
(Ishai, On the Martyrs, 17.2-3, Henana of Adiabene, On Golden Friday, 55.7; Cyrus of Edessa,
Six Explanations, 1-3 [trans. 1-3] and 101 [trans. 88]; Cf. comments in Riad, Studies in the
Syriac Preface, 190, 197-207). Here we find a doubling of the rhetoric of suffering since the
speaker attempts to win the benevolence of the audience by addressing their own suffering.

40 Syr. ‘ellta d-tuqqaneh.

41 Syr. britan qadmayta. ‘Accordingly, since God, more glorious than all and more exalted
than all, is not only good, but also wise, it did not seem good to him that together with our first
creation he should have conferred on us such dignity as he has now in our second creation made
ready (and) given us.’ Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 123.18-22 (trans. 108).

42 Scher emends the text at 331.1 by adding ’ nash.

43 The syntax is awkward. The phrase hay d-kad connects this sentence closely to the
preceding one, since the demonstrative hay seems to refer to taybuta (‘grace’). Thus, God’s
actions described in this sentence are an example of his ‘grace’.

44 Despite their strong anti-Judaism and explicit criticisms of Jewish law the East Syrians
had a tradition of speaking positively about God’s law. Its origins can be found in the writings
of both Aphrahat, the Syriac author of the fourth century, and Theodore of Mopsuestia. See the
discussion of how Aphrahat characterizes the Christian life as an observance of the law in Adam
Lehto, ‘Divine Law, Asceticism, and Gender in Aphrahat’s Demonstrations, with a Complete
Annotated Translation of the Text and Comprehensive Syriac Glossary’ (PhD thesis, University
of Toronto, 2003), 20-59. In his commentary on Galatians, Theodore writes about God that ‘He
gave us diverse laws as an aid and those modes of conduct which are according to the choice of
the spirit, with the result that we do not choose the worse, but learning the good rather we run
to the choice of it (i.e. the good)’. Theodore of Mopsuestia, In epistolas B. Pauli Commentarii,
ed. Henry B. Swete (2 vols.; Cambridge, 1880-1882), 1:26.23-26.

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given to us: that is, the advent of Christ, through whom all the wealth of
his (i.e. God’s) kindness and immeasurable mercy were poured upon us.
Although all these things were given to the faithful in general, nevertheless
you yourselves especially enjoy them, since you study and meditate upon
them and they are for you a pleasure and an excellent luxury, more than
wealth of any kind. 45

[332] Since you know from where this assembly 46 has been handed down;
and how when it was in Edessa for certain reasons 47 it was uprooted 48 from
there and planted in this city through the agency of the excellent and divine
men. Mar Barsauma the bishop and Rabban Mar Narsai the presbyter; 49 and
how after their deaths not only was it (i.e. the assembly) neither diminished
nor did it come to an end, but God made it to abound and increase even
more; and how it did not cease from the tumults and the disputes, which
from time to time were awakened against it through the operation of Satan.
Many advantages 50 flowed from it to the kingdom of the Persians, as the
assemblies bear witness which were born out of it, which are now in many
places. Therefore, for all these things we are not capable of rendering thanks
to God, (that is,) for the things of which he deemed us worthy and the care
which he shows for us, though we are not worthy. And we beseech from God
that he guard it, establish it, and give it a foundation forever.

45 Emphasis on the pleasure derived from meditating upon God’s providence reflects the
larger intellectual impetus behind the ‘cause’ genre.

46 Syr. knushya. This is a term that appears throughout this text to represent schools as
communal gatherings.

47 Lit. ‘causes that called’ ‘causes that summoned’. This is a technical idiom found in the
‘cause’ genre and beyond: e.g. ‘In accordance with the causes which summoned us to converse
with each other from time to time, ...’, Thomas of Marga, Book of Governors, 15.3 (17); ‘First
then let us approach to the plan that it imposes on us and let us say, what cause called Saint
Matthew, that in a book he should deliver the Gospel’, Ishodad of Merv, Commentary on the
Gospels, 2.9.16-18 (1.6); Ishai, On the Martyrs, 15.1.

48 The same root, ‘-q-r (‘to uproot’), appears in a number of sources describing the closure of
the school: Chronicle of Edessa, 8.18-19 (LXXIII); Jacob of Sarug, Letter 14,59.3; Simeon of Bet
Arsham, Letter, 353; John of Ephesus, Lives of the Eastern Saints, 17: 139.9. This usage fits with
the common practice of employing vegetative metaphors to discuss heresy (Andre de Halleux, ‘La
dixieme lettre de Philoxene aux monasteres du Beit Gaugal’, 37.11, 13), but it also fits the use of
‘planting’ (root, n-s-b ) for the new foundation in Nisibis ( nsibin ). See Barhadbeshabba, La second
partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique, 606.9; Memra on the Holy Fathers, line 6 ( Cause 400); John of
Ephesus, Lives of the Eastern Saints, 17: 139.5.

49 On these two figures and their involvement in the foundation of the School of Nisibis,
see the relevant passages and notes in the ‘Life of Narsai’, translated above.

50 Scher supplies the emendation ‘udrane saggi’e, ‘many advantages’, for a brief lacuna
in T (note 1).

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While it is also your concern to attend to your work, to profit and to be
led by the canons that were established for you, just as those who preceded
you transmitted them to you, so these good and useful things you yourselves
should transmit to your successors. 51

[333] We ourselves are grateful also to your holiness, you who continu¬
ally arouse and encourage us to be neither negligent, nor slothful, nor slack
in this occupation. We seek from God that he give to you a heart of wisdom,
knowledge, and understanding of the things that are necessary and on
account of which you have come here. After you have benefited yourselves
and others here, whenever you go to your homelands, you will be seen as
luminaries in the world, you will learn, and you will teach and benefit many.
You will bring the erring closer to the fear of God. 52 You will bear fruit and
give birth to virtuous sons through the grace and mercy of our God, to whom
may there be glory forever and ever. Amen.

God’s Priority in Existence 53

Everything that exists 54 is comprehended and investigated 55 in three orders: 56

51 The canons (Syr. qanone from Gr. kanon ) share a number of characteristics with this
text. Their final ratification was in 602, after a new set of canons were introduced in 590 under
Henana, while the first set was established under Narsai in 496 and later ratified under Abraham
of Bet Rabban. The author’s emphasis on the canons at this point in the text may reflect the
need to further enforce those recently instituted under Henana.

52 The East-Syrian schools often had a missionary emphasis. See, for example, Becker,
Fear of God, 193.

53 The other manuscripts begin at this point and Scher begins to follow C. For a close
reading of 333.8 to 345.6, see Becker, Fear of God, 134-50 (which has a number of overlaps
with the following notes).

54 Syr. itaw(hy) is often translated here as ‘exists’, especially in cases where it seems to
represent a technical philosophical term.

55 Syr. met‘aqqab. See note 23 above.

56 Syr. taksa from Gr. taxis. This word comes into Syriac early and, like the Greek word, has
a broad range of meanings, but generally may be translated as ‘order’ or ‘rank’. The usage here
seems to reflect the influence of Greek philosophical sources. The three perspectives one may
take in looking at an entity and the upward and downward movement upon this scale corresponds
to the discussion of species and genera in the Isagoge of Porphyry and, in particular, the use of
the Tree of Porphyry later in this text (see Appendix II). We find a similar passage in Sergius of
Resh‘ayna’s commentary on the Categories (Hugonnard-Roche, La logique d'Aristote du grec
au syriaque, 193-94). There are also later parallels, e.g. in the preface to Ishodad of Merv’s
commentary on the Gospels: 'But here let us say thus briefly, that the Scriptures speak chiefly
under three heads; first, when they call men just as they are, that is to say, living, rational, mortal;
but secondly, above what they are, when they call us gods; and thirdly, below what they are,
when they call us reptiles and worms and dust, and wolves, and foxes; but God is only names

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 101

either ‘according to the order’, or ‘above the order’, or ‘below the order’; 57
just as we say about a human being that he is soul and body; for this is
said 58 about him ‘according to the order’; or we say that he is God; and this
is ‘above the order’ in respect to him (i.e. the human being); or we call him
bull, eagle, worm, and flea, and these things are ‘below the order’ to him.

[334] God is spoken 59 about in two ways by creatures, either ‘as he exists’
or ‘below the way he exists’. But ‘above the way he exists’ it is not possible
to be spoken. 60 For if we say that he is eternally existent, infinite spirit, the
cause of all, 61 this is defined 62 about him ‘according to the order’. But if we
say he is composed and bodily, ignorant and needful, this is composed about
him ‘below the order’ and inexactly. 63

in two ways, either as He is, as I Am THAT I Am, or as Father and Son and Spirit, or below that
which He is, as fire, or as being angry or in a rage, or that He repented, or that He was a lion,
etc.’ (Ishodad of Merv, Commentary on Gospels , 2.5.10-18 [1.3-4]); or the Book of Treasures
of Job of Edessa, the c. 800 Aristotelian and medical writer (Job of Edessa, Encyclopaedia of
philosophical and natural sciences as taught in Baghdad about A.D. 817; or, Book of treasures,
ed. and trans. A. Mingana [Cambridge: W. Heffer, 1935], 23).

57 The Syriac for each of these is: a{y)k taksd, l- ‘el men taksd, and l-taht men taksd.

58 Syr. et’amrat ‘law{hy). The focus on speaking in this and the next paragraph reflects the
philosophical sense of the Greek legesthai (‘to be spoken’) and especially kategoreisthai (‘to
be categorized’). We find the use of the passive form of the Syriac ‘to say’ (’ emar ) used as as
an equivalent to these Greek verbs in the early sixth-century Syriac translation of the Isagoge,
where also the Syriac preposition ‘al reflects the Greek kata. Compare passages from Porphyry’s
Isagoge in its original Greek to the Syriac version: kategoreisthai kata, Greek 2.16=Syriac 4.6;
Greek 2.17=Syriac 4.9; for legesthai, Greek 1.18=Syriac 2.10; Greek 2.17=Syriac 4.10. There
are many examples of this in the Isagoge. See also Henri Hugonnard-Roche, ‘L’ Organon. Tradi¬
tion syriaque et arabe’, in R. Goulet, ed., Dictionnaire desphilosophes antiques 1 (Paris, 1989),
502-28.

59 Syr. metmallal ‘lawQiy).

60 Syr. netmallal.

61 This is a title for God that appears in a number of sources, including the synodal canons,
e.g.. Brock, ‘Christology of the Church of the East’, 138. Also 338.10 below. It appears in
Theodore of Mopsuestia’s works {On the Nicene Creed, 126 [25]).

62 Syr. etthatmat ‘law{hy), which is the equivalent of the Greek horizesthai. See Porphyry’s
Isagoge in the original Greek and the Syriac version: horizesthai, Greek 10.22=Syriac 24.11;
Greek 11.7=Syriac 25.6; Greek 13.3=Syriac 29.10; horismos, Greek 1.5=Syriac 1.6 (Syriac
thuma)’, Greek 10.20=Syriac 25.21; also see the Syriac of De Interpretatione 21a34 in
Hoffmann, De Hermeneuticis, 45.9, although this is a later translation.

63 There seems to be a pun here: ‘composed’ {mrakkba) simply means ‘consisting of
constituent parts’, while ‘is composed about him’ ( etrakkbat ‘law[hy ]) refers to predication.
An East-Syrian example of this concern for divine simplicity can be found in Narsai, Homilies
on Creation, 11.29, where God is called ‘The one without combination’ ( d-la rukkaba). On
the non-combined nature of God, see, for example, Christopher Stead, ‘Divine Simplicity as a
Problem of Orthodoxy’, in The Making of Orthodoxy: Essays in honour of Henry Chadwick,

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For although this term 64 ‘exists’ 65 agrees with both the universal and
the particular, 66 nevertheless it fits and agrees exactly only with him (i.e.
God), because everything that ‘exists’ is either an entity that has come into
being or not. 67 Just as this ‘coming into being’ 68 is prior to ‘exists’, that is,
‘it came into being’, 69 and the former is the cause of the latter, thus in the
case of he who exists, ‘coming into being’ is not prior to the ‘exists’ of the
eternally existent, and that is the cause of the ‘exists’. For if he were not
existent and eternal, he would be an ‘entity that has come into being’, and
if this were true, he would have a beginning and would receive his ‘coming
into being’ from another and be equal to everything that came into being
in the following two ways: in that it came into being and that it exists. But
if this is defamatory to suppose in this case (i.e. in the case of God), 70 then
he exists because he is an existent being and the creation exists because it
came into being and began.

ed. R. Williams (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989), 255-69. See also Nestorian
Christological Texts , 109.17-23(63.31-37) for a similar statement composed at about the same
time at the School. See also Narsai, Metrical Homilies, III.650: ‘Indestructible is the (Divine)
Essence: because the (Divine) Essence has no structure ( rukkaba)V

The adjective ‘composed’ also resembles the Greek suntheton, the opposite of haplous,
‘simple’, two terms that appear in philosophical discussions: Ammonius, In Categorias 35.18-
36.3 (Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 46); Philoponus, In Categorias 27.10-32. The
second usage of the same root (‘it is composed about him’) derives from Aristotelian logic
where any statement requires the combination of subject and predicate, e.g. De Interpretation
16al2-16. For Probus’s Syriac commentary on this, see Hoffmann, De Hermeneuticis, Syriac
69 (Latin 95); Rakkeb becomes even more important than the Greek sunthesis in the early
translation of De Interpretatione, because it is used to render several Greek terms: Syriac
22A5=sunthesin (16a 12) for the combination of a subject and a predicate; Syriac 22.17=the
same (16al4); Syriac 243=peplegmenois (16a24); Syriac 26.6 =sunthesis (16b24); Syriac
28.10 mrakkba=sunthetos (17a22); Syriac 26.\A=diplois (16b32).

64 Syr. ba{r)t qala, lit. ‘daught of a sound’. The sound ( qala ) of a word is its superficial
characteristic as an arbitrary signifies

65 Syr. itawihy).

66 The words ‘universal’ (Syr. gawwa) and ‘particular’ ( ihidaya ) reflect philosophical usage.
Isagoge (Greek=Syriac): td kath’ hekasta 6.20=15.2 ( ihidaya ); td kata meros 6.21-22=15.5,
17.4; td kath hekaston 6.22=15.6 ( ihidayuta) ; tou koinou 7.25=17.12 (d-gawwa); td koinon
6.23=15.7 ( gawwanayuta ).

67 The following relies on the philosophical distinction between the two verbs meaning ‘to
be’ in Greek, etnai and gignesthai, represented by the Syriac itawQiy ) and hwa, rendered here
as ‘exists’ and ‘came into being’, respectively. The noun hwaya, based on the verb hwa, could
be more fully translated as ‘something which has come into being’.

68 Syr. hwaya.

69 Syr. hwa.

70 Syr. taman, lit. ‘there’. This usage of the locative adverb seems to be modelled on that
of the Greek word ekei.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 103

God’s Epistemological Inaccessibility

[335] So that from this it should be certain that he is the one alone who
exists from the beginning 71 before all beings, 72 even though before beings
not only the (term) ‘one’ but also the (term) ‘beginning’ do not fit him. 73 For
these things are established about him by analogy. 74 For he is without name
and without title and he exists existentially 75 above all appellations, since he
exists, and he did not come into being nor did he begin, because the appella¬
tions ‘coming into being’ 76 and ‘beginning’ were not even known until then,
except by that intelligence which knows all. But he existed alone existen¬
tially, while having an essence, rich in blessings, 77 and he abided in joyous
light, just as also now, being ineffable and inscrutable, yet he knew himself
and he was known from himself and through himself and about himself,
just as also now, although it is not possible for that manner, by which he
knew himself, to be spoken or conceived of by reasoning beings. As our
Lord spoke and Paul bore witness: No one knows the Son except the Father,
nor does any one know the Father except the Son.™ And: No one knows that
which is in a human being except the spirit of the human being 79 which is in
him. Thus also what is in God no one knows except the spirit of God. m

[336] While with these properties 81 of his he exists ineffably, 82 since
thought has no place, and also time, which begins from movement, and

71 This term, brashit (lit. ‘in the beginning’) is the first word of Gen. 1:1 and is also the
name of the book of Genesis in Syriac. It derives from the original Hebrew and is not a natural
Aramaic expression.

72 Again the Syr. hwaya, but here the translation aims to convey the result, as opposed to
the process, of coming into being.

73 Parallels to the content of the following passage can be found in earlier patristic texts,
but most immediately Jacob of Sarug, Homilies, 3:28.10-16: God existing without name before
creation; 3:6.3-8: God taking solitary pleasure in himself.

74 Syr. pehma, the root literally meaning ‘equal, like, similar’. See the use of pehma in
Theodore of Mopsuestia, Fragments, 1.15, 2.3, 2.8.

75 Syr. itaw(hy ) itya’it.

76 Syr. hwaya.

11 See note LN 35.

78 Mt 11:27.

79 d-barnasha is missing from T.

80 1 Cor 2:11.

81 Or ‘these (attributes)’. See note 11 above.

82 Syr. la metmallana’it. Since speech and reason are related in Syriac (as in Greek) this
adverb may also be rendered ‘in a not rationalizable manner’ or even ‘in an uncategorizable
manner’.

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movement, which adheres to essence, 83 is further from there than any farness
- for he is the depth of depths, not to be searched out or discovered 84 -
thought does not have a path by which to go as far as that lordship, loftier
than the trodden paths and ways of the mind, the swift messenger of the soul.
Because the mind does not have a path by which to go there, also reason, 85 a
swift horse of four feet, is lame and abstains from the course. Since, as far as
thought is concerned, which is guide 86 and tutor 87 of reason, the pupils of its

83 The Syriac hushshdba, ‘thought’, perhaps reflects the Greek logismos (as opposed to,
for example, noesis, which means ‘intuition’). ‘There is no place for thought’ or ‘Thought
has no place’ (Syr. atra l-hushshaba layt) seems to derive from the Greek usage of topos
(perhaps the idiom echein topori). ‘Movement’ ( zaw‘a ) is equivalent to the Greek kinesis,
which Aristotle himself suggests is not altogether different from the Greek metabole (‘change’)
(e.g., Hugonnard-Roche, La logique d’Aristote du grec au syriaque, 30: zaw‘a = metabole).
According to Aristotle, time does not exist without change or movement ( Physics 218b21).
Therefore, time can only begin with the advent of the two. Much of this can be found in Physics
Bk. 2. Ammonius, In Categorias 60.24-25 (Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 71) states:
‘For time is the measure of change’. This issue was taken up in a no longer extant treatise of
Sergius of Resh‘ayna (Hugonnard-Roche, La logique d’Aristote du grec au syriaque, 128).
The word ‘essence’ ( ituta ), used above, often renders the Greek ousia, but, since in Christo-
logical discussions the East Syrians often use kyana with a meaning close to ituta and since
kyana is a word commonly used to translate the Greek phusis, there is a possibility that ituta
may derive from phusis in this instance. Aristotle writes: ‘For nature is the principle and cause
of motion and rest for those things, and those things only, in which she inheres primarily, as
distinct from incidentally’ ( Physics 192b21-23). A Syriac scholion attributed to Sergius of
Resh‘ayna reads: ‘Definition of nature: the principle of movement and repose’, Furlani, ‘Due
scoli filosofici attribuiti a Sergio di Teodosiopoli (Res‘ayna)’, 140 (I do not have access to the
manuscript, but Furlani seems to be translating kyana here). The word ‘adheres’, Syr. naqeph, is
used to translate several Greek words, including hepesthai and akolouthein (Porphyry, Isagoge
(Greek=Syriac): 16.2=35.16, 19.13=43.2). There are several instances of this in Hoffmann, De
Hermeneuticis, but from the later version of De Interpretation: akolouthei is translated thus on
p. 52; see also naqqiphuta 48.1 2=akolouthesis (22al4). For hyphistanai, see Porphyry, Isagoge
(Greek=Syriac): 18.18-19=41.8 and hyparchein, ibid. 16.14-15=37.3 and 37.5; pdresti, ibid.
22.2=47.14. The verb naqeph can be variously translated in its philosophical usage as ‘follows,
is concomitant with, joined to, belongs to’.

84 Eccl 7:23-24. The awkwardness of the Syriac reflects problems in the original Hebrew
text. This line is quoted again below at 361. Note the emphasis on God as the ‘mover of all’
( mzi‘and d-kul) in the Syriac fragments of Theodore’s commentary on Ecclesiastes (Werner
Strothmann, ed.. Das syrische Fragment des Ecclesiastes-Kommentars von Theodor von
Mopsuestia [Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1988], 443 [p. 110]). See Ramelli, Causa della
fondazione delle scuole, 132, n. 23.

85 Syr. mellta, or ‘the word’.

86 Syr. huddaya. The ‘guide of reason’ is also mentioned in Henana, On Golden Friday,
57.3.

87 Syr. tarra’. Scher wrongly suggests that this term derives from Gr. theoria (note 1).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 105

eyes are blind, 88 and it would not be able to search into that powerful light, if
our Lord himself had not performed his grace in us and revealed and showed
us concerning his essence, 89 albeit in a manner fit only for children, 90 as Paul
said: Knowledge of God is revealed in these things, and while showing how
it is revealed, he said: God revealed it in these things, 91 and to us again God
has revealed by his spirit. 91 And our Lord said: To whomever the Son wills
to reveal him. 91 And: I have made your name known among human beings. 94
But if not, not even [337] this crumb of knowledge would be able to fix
its gaze on that divine presence, 95 since all of his properties unspeakably
transcend the thought and reason 96 of created things.

For also what we should know that we do not know, in my opinion,
transcends knowledge. Therefore he who has determined that he has attained

88 This is a common motif, which ultimately derives from Plato. See, for example, Vasiliki
Limberis, ‘The Eyes Infected by Evil: Basil of Caesarea’s Homily, On Envy’, Harvard
Theological Review 84 (1991): 163-84. For Neoplatonic examples of blinding the eye of the
soul, see Simplicius, in de Caelo 7.74.5 (CAG 7.1; ed. J. L. Heilberg, 1894); ibid., in Categorias
8.8.5; the ‘eye of the soul’ is common: e.g. Clement, Paed. 2.1.2, td omma tes psuches (ed. M.
Marcovich [Leiden: Brill, 2002], 66.5).

89 Syr. yat. The Syriac yat is actually the archaic accusative marker used in the Peshitta of
Gen 1:1. The form was not recognizable to Syriac exegetes who interpreted it as cognate with
the existential particle, it. For example, see Ephrem’s prose commentary on Gen 1:1, Ephrem
the Syrian, In Genesim et in Exodum Commentarii, ed. and trans. R.-M. Tonneau (CSCO
152-23; Louvain: L. Durbecg, 1955), 1.1 (8/5); see also St. Ephrem the Syrian, Selected Prose
Works , ed. Kathleen McVey, trans. Joseph P. Amar and Edward G. Mathews, Jr. (Fathers of
the Church 91; Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1994), 74, n. 20. This
interpretation was followed by many of the later exegetes, cf. T. Jansma, ‘Investigations into
the Early Syrian Fathers on Genesis: An Approach to the Exegesis of the Nestorian Church and
to the Comparison of Nestorian and Jewish Exegesis’, Oudtestamentishe Studien 12 (1958):
101 and Antoine Guillaumont, ‘Genese 1, 1-2 selon les commentateurs Syriaques’, in IN
PRINCIPIO: Interpretations des premiers verset de la Genese (Etudes augustiniennes 152;
Paris, 1973), 122-24.

90 Syr. shabra’it. See the use of this word below (note 377). Cf. Ephrem the Syrian,
Sermones de Fide , ed. Edmund Beck (CSCO 212-13; Louvain, Secretariat du CSCO, 1961),
31:2 (trans. Brock, The Luminous Eye, 60): ‘He asked for our form and put this on, and then,
as a father with His children (yallude ), He spoke with our childish state (, shabrutan ).’ See also
1 Cor 3:1-3 (though the Peshitta of this passage does not use shabra for ‘child’).

91 Rom 1:19.

92 1 Cor 2:10. This could also be vocalized as passive: ‘God is revealed’.

93 Mt 11:27.

94 Jn 17:6.

95 Syr. shkinta, equivalent to the Hebrew Shekhinah.

96 Syr. mellta, also ‘word’ or ‘speech’.

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knowledge even about things that are unknowable - an abortion is better
than him, since it is complete stupidity. But if he knew God as unknowable,
this one would be known by God as wise.

Distinctions and Learning

But because that (divine) essence is such a thing as this, let us see in what
way we receive learning concerning it, and what is the difference between
creatures and their creator. For although the names ‘created’ and ‘creature’
are general, they nevertheless include under themselves many genera and
species. 97 Just as the name ‘spirit’, ‘body’, ‘nature’, or ‘exists’, although it
is equal 98 in its external naming capacity, 99 nevertheless each one of them
applies to 100 many different, dissimilar, various, and unequal things; thus
also the names ‘created’ and ‘coming into being’, although equal, there are
nevertheless many things under them. 101 Since 102 everything that exists is
either substance or accident, each of these divisions is divided into many
species, [338] these (entities) that are included under it. Therefore all
substance that exists is either corporeal or incorporeal.

Body too is divided into the many distinctions that are under it: that is,
then, the ensouled body and the one without soul, the one endowed with

97 Syr. gense, from Gr. genos; Syr. adshe, perhaps from the Greek eidos.

98 The Aristotelian idea of the homonym lies behind this passage. Homonyms are words
that share the same name but differ in definition and are thus similar only in name, but not in
nature. The Syriac shawe b- is used here to express the Greek prefix homo-. See, for example,
Ammonius, In Categorias 6.8-10 (Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 39). For the various
renderings of the terms ‘homonym’ and ‘synonym’ in different Syriac translations of the Catego¬
ries , see Hugonnard-Roche, La logique d’Aristote du grec au syriaque, 27. For example, Probus,
following a Greek source, writes: ‘the expression equal in name (shawyat shma) (is divided) into
different significations, such as the expression “dog” into “sea dog” [i.e. shark] and “land dog’”,
Hoffmann, De Hermeneuticis, 82.1-2 (Hoffmann suggests a Greek source for this example
[134 note 120]). For a similar early example in Greek, see Ammonius, In Categorias 38.12-14
(Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 48—49). The Cause thus argues in this section that the
word ‘exists’ as it is applied to God and as it is applied to all beings is a homonym: it is the same
word, but means something different in each case. This focus on homonyms can be found in other
‘cause’ literature (e.g., Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 100.8-20 [trans. 90.5-19]).

99 Syr. ba-qraytah barrayta.

100 Lit. ‘falls upon’.

101 The expressions ‘created’ and ‘coming into being’ are treated as polyonyms by the text,
i.e. they have the same definition but are different names. ‘But if they have their account in
common but differ in name, they are called polyonyms, as is the case with sword, scimitar, and
sabre’, Ammonius, In Categorias 16.4-6 (Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 23).

102 On the following passage, see Appendix II.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 107

sense and the other deprived of it. Thus also the ensouled body is arranged
into other distinctions: the body that is living and the one that is not, the one
that moves, and the other deprived of movement; and again that one that is
living and moves is divided also into other distinctions that are under it, that
is, the rational and the non-rational, and again the rational into the spiritual
and the psychic, and the non-rational into the living and the non-living; and
again the spiritual is divided also into the limited and the unlimited, the one
eternal and the other temporal, the one the cause of all things, the other is
the effect that is from the cause of all things, which is God.

Because something is excellent not because it exists, but rather on account
of what it is and in what manner it exists; for the former (i.e. existence) is
universal, but the latter (i.e. quality) particular. 103 For a bull is better than
a stone, not because it is body but because it is living and endowed with
senses. A king or a priest (is better than the mass of people), 104 not because
he is a human being, but by his rank and his honour. An angel [339] also
is better than a human being by his immortality, and God than his creation
by his essence and his eternality. For ‘existing’ is something in common to
him and us, but this individual thing belongs to him alone. For example, the
human being excels all bodies, not because he is corporeal, but because he
speaks. 105 And, again, an angel (excels) all bodies, not because he is incor¬
poreal, but because he is living and immortal. In like manner also God excels
all things, not because he exists, but because of how he exists.

Although he is so high in his nature, exalted in his lordship, and distinct
from everything which has come into being, nevertheless he took it upon
himself to be said and spoken 106 of in the compound language 107 of creatures
for the sake of our learning. For also in learning thus you find that all the
lower distinctions take the appellation of the higher ones; but the higher ones
are not called by the names of the lower ones. For the human being is living
and ensouled of essence, but not everything that is living is a human being,
such as every animal, bird, and creeping thing. And again everything which
is living is ensouled, such as all plants; but not everything which is a nature

103 See note 66 above on the translation of these terms.

104 T has ‘a priest than the mass of people ( w-kahna men qutna)' and lacks ‘a king’. The
comparative phrase (‘than the mass of people’) may be an interpolation since a comparison is
implicit in the passage. The absence of ‘a king’ from T fits with the change to the singular in
the subsequent clause.

105 I.e. he is endowed with reason.

106 Syr. net’emar w-netmallal. See note 58 above.

107 Syr. mamld mrakkba. See note 63 above.

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108 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

is ensouled, such as rocks and material 108 species, and again not everything
that is a nature is a body, such as angels and souls.

Divine Illumination

[340] Nevertheless, although everything that exists is divided into all these
distinctions, learning about the creator and creation is only found in these
two orders, 109 1 mean angels and human beings. But because these are too
weak to consider that divine essence, he has established for us an invisible
lamp, 110 the soul within us, and he has filled it with the oil of immortal life,
and he has placed in it continuous wicks 111 with intellectual thoughts, and he
has caused to be grasped in it the light of the divine mind, by which we are
able to see and to distinguish, as that woman 112 who lost one of the ten zuz} 13
the hidden things of the creator, and to go around all of the rich treasury of
his kingdom, until we ourselves also find that zuz upon which is stamped
the glorious image 114 of him, the eternal King of Kings. 115 For (we would
not be able to do this) 116 if he had not given us this light, as John says: In it
was life and the life was the light of human beings} 11 that is, rational power,
such as our Lord said: If the light within you is darkness, how much will be
your darkness',™ for if the blind lead the blind, the two of them will fall into
the pit. 119 And because of this he commands us: Walk while you have [341]

108 Syr. hulaye, an adjective deriving ultimately from Gr. hule.

109 Syr. tegme, from Gr. tagma.

110 The same Syriac word for ‘lamp’ appears in the Lukan parable employed below.

111 Scher notes that C adds here in the margin: ‘These are things in which wicks of candles
are placed, and they are made from iron and from brass; shbr’ in Arabic is hot’. This is not true
and it is not clear what Arabic word the scribe is referring to.

112 The Parable of the Lost Coin (Lk 15:8-10) received esoteric exegesis. For example,
Isho‘dad of Merv provides more than one interpretation, including one where ‘the ten drachmae
are ten Orders of Angels; the losing of one is Man, he who buried in sin as in the grave, the
likeness which he received from the beginning; the Candle is the Incarnation; the Fire is the
Godhead; the wick is Humanity; etc.’ (Ishodad of Merv, Commentary on Gospels , 3.50.2-
51.20 (1.180-81); Gregory of Nyssa, On Virginity , in Werner Jaeger et al., ed.. Opera Ascetica
(Leiden : Brill, 1952), 300.13-302.4.

113 The original Greek version uses drachmas as the coinage. The standard Aramaic
equivalent to a drachma is a zuz.

114 Syr. yuqna , from Gr. eikon.

115 This title fits the contemporary Persian context.

116 I follow Scher’s insertion, since the statement would not make sense otherwise.

117 Jn 1:4.

118 Mt 6:23.

119 Lk 6:39.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 109

the light of rationality in the divine wisdom, lest the darkness of error and
ignorance overtake you} 20

Therefore it is the lot of this rational and illuminated mind, which is the
likeness of God, its maker, to dwell in two places: the one, upon the earth
while clothed in a corporeal garment, going about within a fleshy enclosure;
the other, in turn, up above - the portion fell to it that it might walk within the
open plain of air; 121 for such as these are all the spiritual orders. 122

Mind as Captain and the Purification of the Faculties

Now because our speech is about this mind that is within us, let us see
how it is in us and what sort is its place of dwelling. For hitherto the wise
men of the Greeks have been conquered (in their reasoning), since they
even attribute the name of divinity to it (i.e. the mind). Now its cause and
its foundation is the soul that is fettered within us, which has three cogni¬
tive faculties: 123 reason, thought, and reckoning; 124 from these are born three
others, that is, desire, anger, and will; 125 the mind is above all these things,

120 Jn 12:35.

121 Syr. a’ar, from Gr. aer.

122 Syr. tegme, from Gr. tdgma.

123 Syr. hayle yado ‘tane equivalent to Gr. dunameis gndstikai, noetikcu, or thedretikcu. ‘For
of the cognitive faculties some are logical, others are alogical, the logical ones are the mind,
thought, and opinion; the alogical ones imagination and sensation’, Philoponus, In Analytica
Priora 32.17-18 (CAG 13.2; ed. M. Wallies, 1905). Of the five cognitive faculties of the
soul, the three logical ones are reason, thought, and opinion (e.g., Ammonius, In Analytica
Priora , 24.32-33 [CAG 4.6; ed. M. Wallies, 1899]). See the editor’s comment at Philoponus,
On Aristotle on the Intellect (deAnima 3.4-8), trans. W. Charlton (Ithaca, NY: Cornell Univer¬
sity Press, 1991), 16.

124 Again, these are based on Greek equivalents: ‘reason’ (Syr. hawna, Gr. nous ); ‘thought’
(Syr. tar‘itd, Gr. dianoia ); ‘reckoning’ (rendering the Syriac term) (Syr. mahshabtd, Gr. doxa ).
Similar cognitive faculties show up in the sixth-century Syriac commentary on the Prior
Analytics attributed to Probus. A. Van Hoonacker, ‘Le Traite du Philosophe Syrien Probus
sur les premiers analytiques d’Aristote’, JA ser. 9 vol. 16 (1900): 88. Probus does not divide
these into logical and illogical. The text presents the five cognitive faculties as: hawna, tar‘ita,
hayla meshkhand, fantasya (Gr. phantasia), regshd (Gr. ai'sthesis ) (the latter two being the
non-logical parts of the soul). His term for the Greek doxa, ‘opinion’, is hayla meshkhand, in
contrast to the Cause's mahshabtd.

125 For the three appetitive parts of the soul, see De Anima 414b2: ‘desire’ (Syr. regta,
Gr. epithumi'a ); ‘anger’ (Syr. hemta; Gr. thumbs)’, ‘will’ (Syr. sebyand, Gr. boulesis ). See also
Ammonius, In De Interpretatione 5.Iff (trans. Ammonius, On Aristotle’s On Interpretation
1-8, 14); Ammonius, In Isagogen 11.16-18; Olympiodorus, In Platonis Gorgiam (ed. L. G.
Westerink, Leipzig: Teubner, 1970), 12.3.12-15; David, Prolegomena philosophiae 79.6ff
(CAG 18.2; ed. A. Busse, 1904); Alexander of Aphrodisias, De Anima 74.2 and 78.23 (CAG

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110 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

as a wise driver and a ready captain, 126 gazing at a distance and keeping his
ship laden with these treasures away from the crags of error and the thick
fog 127 of ignorance. 128 While with the former intellectual portion 129 [342]
he purifies 130 the learned powers of the soul, 131 not so that they then may
understand one thing for something else, but so that they may grasp the truth
and exactitude of things, with the other, the effectual portion, it strains clean
in turn the animal powers 132 of the soul and it prepares them so that their

suppl. 2.1; ed. I. Bruns, 1887). The three standard forms of ‘appetite’ ( orexis ) are rendered by
the same Syriac terms in the Discourse on the Causes of the Universe, the work by Alexander
of Aphrodisias attributed to Sergius of ReslTayna in the seventh-century manuscript, British
Library Add. 14658. 99bl.l6-107b.2.14; see Dana R. Miller, ‘Sargis of Resh‘aina: On What
the Celestial Bodies Know’, Symposium Syriacum VI1992 (OCA 247; Rome, 1994), 224.

126 Both ‘driver’ and ‘captain’ derive from the Greek ( hemochos and kubernetes). The word
hemochos is attested in Syriac as early as Ephrem (see Sermones de Fide, ed. Edmund Beck
[CSCO 212—13; Louvain, Secretariat du CSCO, 1961], 3.464; 7.418). It shows up three times in
the contemporary school text, Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 9.16; 39.22; 42.16. Brock notes
instances of hawna and mad‘a as kubernetes at Isaac of Nineveh, Second Part, 17.12 nt 3 (versio).
The two terms have a philosophical provenance, e.g. Aristotle, DeAnima 413a9 questions whether
the soul in the body is like a sailor in a ship. See also Anonymus, In Categorias, 14.32-15.3 (CAG
23.2; ed. M. Hayduck, 1883); Philoponus, De OpificioMundi, 3:584.6-22; Plotinus, Enneads, ed.
Paul Henry and Hans-Rudolf Schwyzer (Oxford: Clarendon, 1964-1982), 4.3.21.

127 Syr. ‘arpeld. This word is commonly used to describe the unknowability of the divine
essence. See, e.g., Isaac of Nineveh, Second Part (versio), 5.1 n. 6 (p. 6), 5.26 n. 6 (p. 42),
10.17 n. 3(42).

128 Ship and sailing metaphors are common. For example, Isaac of Nineveh, Second Part,
17.12, uses the same word for ‘crag’ (Syr. shqiphd ) as the Cause in a similar metaphor for the
dangers the intellect encounters in the world.

129 The distinction between the two parts of philosophy, the speculative (or theoretical) and
the practical, is standard in the Neoplatonic commentary tradition (as well as in other philo¬
sophical literatures), e.g. Ammonius, In Isagogen, 6.6-7; Philoponus, In Categorias, 12.12ff;
Olympiodorus, Prolegomena, 22.8-12 (CAG 12.1; ed. A. Busse, 1902). The former seeks the
truth, while the latter seeks the good. These two parts of philosophy are equated with the
different parts of the soul, as we find in the Cause where they are mapped onto its two parts. The
cognitive (or intellectual) portion and the active portion of the soul, both of which contribute
to the purifying process, are also clearly based on original Greek terms: ‘intellectual portion’
(Syr. mnata yadu ‘tanita, Gr. meros theoretikon ) and ‘effectual portion’ (Syr. mndtd sa ‘orta,
Gr. meros praktikon). Philoponus, In de Anima 15.520.21ff describes the parts of the soul (on
Aristotle, De Anima 429a 10).

130 See notes LN 36 and LN 39 on the language of purification.

131 The ‘learned powers’ (Syr. hayle yado‘e) may represent the Greek ‘cognitive faculties’
(Gr. energeiai or dundmeis gndstikai).

132 The ‘animal powers’ (Syr. hayle hayutane) represents Gr. energeiai zotikal. ‘Animal’
is another way of referring to the ‘appetitive’ faculties of the soul. In Ammonius, In Isagogen
11.16-8; 11.17, zotikal is a synonym for orektikai (see also Ammonius, In de Interpr, 5. Iff).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 111

course may not be in things that are of no benefit, but that their movements
be suitable and right. 133

For because all of the things over which the mind goes are distinct and
different from one another; so that it is not drowned in their diversity and
harmed by their opposition as a swimmer by the tempests of the sea, he
seeks for himself, instead of a leather bottle (as a flotation device) and a
light boat, a new ship of rationality by which he may go over the surface of
the whole world with confidence, and he takes from it, instead of pearls and
precious stones, the wisdom of the fear of God, that which is acquired by a
correct knowledge.

Perfection of Intelligence and Action

For because all things doubly established in learning are divided into two
kinds: intelligence and action; it is right to know that the perfection of intel¬
ligence is [343] the exact comprehension of the knowledge of all beings, the
perfection of action is the excellence of good things. 134

Therefore because there is an opposite attached to each one of these,
as colour 135 is to a body, and accident is to essence, that is, to the perfec¬
tion of intelligence and action; 136 on this account, rationality was sought as
an intermediary that it might distinguish for us this opposition 137 from the
true perfection of each one of the portions of the soul. For if the perfection
of intelligence is exact knowledge of all things that exist, it is certain that
its opposite is ignorance. Because of this we are in need of rationality by
which we distinguish the truth from falsehood. For what is revealed to be
the truth - this we grasp by healthy conviction, which is the knowledge of
things. Yet whatever is borne witness to by a true demonstration to be a lie,
this thing we leave out of all remembrance of truth. It is certain then that
without rationality it (i.e. truth) is not distinguished correctly or known by

133 Parallels to the above passage can be found in Sergius of Resh‘ayna’s commentary on
Aristotle’s Categories , Hugonnard-Roche, La logique d’Aristote du grec au syriaque, 191 and
comments at 203-09.

134 For this same formulation of ‘knowledge’ (Syr. ida‘ta, Gr. gnosis, theoria), ‘action’
(Syr. sa‘oruta, Gr. praxis ) and ‘perfection’ (Syr. shumlaya, Gr. teleidsis), see Ammonius, In
Isagogen 6.6ff and 11.18-22.

135 T has ‘shadow’.

136 The analogy that colour is to body as accident is to essence derives from Aristotelian
logic.

137 Opposition is common in Aristotelian physics. See, for example, the discussion of
opposites in De Generatione et Corruptione, II.2.

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those who judge these things in a human manner. For he who does not speak
in the divine spirit, his teaching will be in need of lower, rational things for
it to be believed by those who hear it. 138

[344] Thus in turn also in that other portion, ‘action’, now if its perfec¬
tion is the selection of good things, as we have shown, it is clear that evil
is the opposite of the good. On account of this, we need rationality in this
portion, ‘action’, so that it may distinguish for us the good from the evil, lest
while we rush after the good we choose the evil by ignorance and we let go
of the good. Since it is certain that no one willingly finds the evil and rebukes
the good; 139 whatever is seen by means of this art 140 to be good, that thing is
truly good; and again whatever seems evil, by necessity it certainly is evil.

Reason for Corporeal Creation

Therefore by this wonderful instrument 141 of rationality the mind paints all

138 See a similar statement in Sergius of Resh‘ayna’s commentary on the Categories : *[...]
Without all this [i.e. Aristotle’s works on logic] neither can the meaning of writings on medicine
be grasped, nor can the opinions of the philosophers be known, nor indeed the true sense of the
divine scriptures in which the hope of our salvation is revealed - unless a person receive divine
power as a result of the exalted nature of his way of life, with the result that he has no need of
human training. As far as human power is concerned, however, there can be no other course
or path to all the areas of knowledge except by way of training in Logic’ (trans. Sebastian
Brock, A Brief Outline of Syriac Literature [Moran Etho 9; Kottayam: SEERI, 1997], 204).
The original Syriac of this text remains in manuscript form. See also the prologue of Paul the
Persian, Introduction to Logic , 1.1—4.25 (Syriac) / 1-5 (Latin). Compare this to Ammonius, In
Categorias 15.4-10 (Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 22).

139 This is a standard idea in Platonic philosophy.

140 Syr. umanuta, which is perhaps here equivalent to the Gr. techne.

141 Syr. urganawn, from Gr. organon. According to Ammonius, it is ‘logic’ that ‘discrimi¬
nates for us the true from the false and the good from the bad’ (Ammonius, In Categorias
13.5-6 [Ammonius, On Aristotle’s Categories, 19]). See also Simplicius, In Categ 14.19-22.
Cf. Sergius’s commentary on the Categories : ‘Logic is the instrument that clearly distinguishes
in knowledge the true from the false and in practice defines again the good from the bad’,
Giuseppe Furlani, ‘Sul trattato di Sergio di Resh‘ayna circa le categorie’, Rivista di Studi
filosofici e religiosi 3 (1922): 139; see also 141. The Syriac author ‘Probus’ in the sixth century
also follows the Neoplatonic model: ‘For when art sought to adorn the soul, it saw that there are
two faculties of the soul, the intellectual and the active. The intellectual is that one by which
we know things; the active is that one by which we do things. While art wants to adorn that
intellectual (faculty) and that active (faculty), it sent out two parts, that is, theory and practice,
that through theory it might adorn the intellectual (faculty) and through practice the active
(faculty). For theory teaches about the cognition of things, practice about the correcting of
habits’ (Hoffmann, De Hermeneuticis, Syriac 65.18-26, Latin 92). As stated already above,
the Organon is also the name for the earlier part of Aristotle’s logical corpus: the Categories,

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the adorned images of exact knowledge and by it casts a glorious statue 142
of that prototype, 143 so that then the intelligence and the rationality of this
mind be neither idle nor useless. Since it has no alphabet, by which it might
compose names and read 144 them, receive learning about that essence, as
well as make manifest the authority of his lordship, by necessity as a training
exercise and a sign of his freedom, the creator established this corpore¬
ality and adorned it with powers 145 and colours, 146 and he divided it up into
genera 147 and species 148 and distinguished it by figures 149 and activities, 150
and he conferred upon it individual properties. 151 [345] He brought it (i.e.
corporeality) in and set it in this spacious gulf between heaven and earth.
As if upon some tablet he wrote and composed all the visible bodies that it
(i.e. mind) might read them and from them know that one who was the cause

De Interpretatione, and Prior Analytics 1.1-7.

142 Syr. adriyante, from Gr. andrias, andridntos. Like the Neoplatonists who follow
Aristotle, the text maintains a representative view of knowledge, which means that we know
things by making images in our heads about them: ‘And it is not possible to think without an
image’ (On Memory 449b, 30-31); more broadly, see De Anima III.7

143 Syr. tape(n)ka (from Persian). This term is commonly used to refer to God as the
original model or prototype for the human being, e.g., ‘For the human being is like unto God
as the image to the prototype’ (Lucas Van Rompay, ed. and trans., Le Commentaire sur Genese-
Exode 9,32 du manuscript (olim) Diyarbakir 22 [CSCO 483-84; Louvain: Peeters, 1986],
21.7-8 [see nn. 158 and 159 on pp. 28-29]). Van Rompay notes that Gr. archetupon shows up
similarly in fragments of Theodore of Mopsuestia, the source for this metaphor. See also Cyrus
of Edessa, Six Explanations, 97.11. At 120.20 Cyrus instead uses resh tuphsd the caique of
archetupon. See his use of this imagery at 43.18-45.27 (trans. 37-39).

144 This word is cognate with the term mhaggyana, an office at the school. It can also be
translated as ‘read syllable by syllable, vocalize, or meditate upon’. For a discussion of the Hebrew
cognate and its oral significance, see William A. Graham, Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects
of Scripture in the History of Religion (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987), 134-35.

145 Syr. hayle, equivalent to Gr. dundmeis or energei'ai.

146 Syr. gawne, equivalent to Gr. chromata.

147 Syr. gense, from Gr. genos.

148 Syr. ddshe, equivalent to Gr. eide.

149 Syr. eskime, from Gr. schemata. The word schema is commonly used in Syriac. Like
the Greek word from which it derives it has a diversity of meanings. In a discussion of creation
it is fitting that the Cause uses this word to describe the different structures of the world
(see also Jacob of Sarug, Homilies, 3:1.8; 6.15; 8.20). However, in a context where logic is
being addressed this word can also mean ‘logical figure’, the basic configuration of argument
in Aristotle’s syllogistic. See for example Furlani, ‘Due scoli filosofici attribuiti a Sergio di
Teodosiopoli (Res‘ayna)’, 142-45.

150 Syr. ma‘bdanwata, equivalent to Gr. energei'ai or dundmeis.

151 Syr. dildyatd ihidayata, equivalent to Gr. idid.

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of this learning, 152 as Paul said: They seek and search for God and from his
creation they find him, 153 and that it might take delight in desirable goods,
be profited by its wonderful beauties, plait and set upon his head a crown of
joys, adorned with the beauties and praises of that good Lord. 154

Angelic Activity Above

While the dwelling place of that prior portion of the invisible ones is in the
paths above and in the expanses of the firmament, as Daniel says: The man
Gabriel, whom I saw before in a vision, fluttered and flew and came from
heaven, 155 and our Lord said to the Jews: Now you will see the heavens
opened and the angels of God ascending and descending to the Son of
Man 156 with Jacob’s ladder, which also gave a hint of these things, while
they have the authority to work all of the spacious plain of air, from the
heights to the deep, in advantageous and refined 157 variations, as it is said:
The have the power and do his commandments and (they are) his se/wants 153
who do his will. 159

The Human Capacity to Traverse the Firmament to Heaven and
Back, and the Human Authority over Creation

[346] But lest this lower portion be saddened and envy the honour of
its higher mate, he (i.e. God) honoured it with the name ‘his image and

152 For Aristotle thinking and perceiving are analogous activities {De Anima 427al8-21).
‘To the thinking soul images serve as if they were contents of perception (and when it asserts
or denies them to be good or bad it avoids or pursues them). That is why the soul never thinks
without an image. The process is like that in which the air modifies the pupil in this or that way
and the pupil transmits the modification to some third thing (and similarly in hearing), while
the ultimate point of arrival is one, a single mean, with different manners of being’ ( De Anima
431al4-19). The source of knowledge for Aristotle is perception (as opposed to Plato, who puts
the intellect first). From perception we use imagination to form an image by which to think.
This is why Aristotle compares the mind to a writing-tablet {De Anima 430al).

153 Acts 17:27. This is the other New Testament passage from which a notion of natural
theology is often derived (along with Rom 1:19).

154 Cf. Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography, V.58-59.

155 Dan 9:21.

156 Jn 1:51.

157 Syr. msarrphdne can also have an active meaning of ‘refining’ or ‘purging’.

158 Syr. mshammshane. This term is also used for ‘deacons’ within the church, the dual
usage here suggesting a further parallelism between heaven and earth.

159 Ps 103:20, 21. Cf. Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography, IX.3.

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likeness’, 160 and he placed upon it the name of his divinity: 161 I have said,
‘You are Gods and children of the Exalted all of you.’ 162 He (i.e. God) gave
it (i.e. the lower portion) the power to ascend to heaven and the upper
vaults 163 and, just as in a royal palace 164 and the upper chambers, 165 to go
about in all the streets and ways 166 above the upper heavens. 167 Sometimes
he (i.e. the lower portion) descends to take pleasure in that whole wide gulf
between the firmament and heaven, while he is with himself alone 168 as if
in a royal palace. 169 When he wants, he sends himself forth from there to
this corporeal 170 place beneath the firmament and he flies in that fiery place
and he is not scorched, 171 and he goes over the stars as if over rocks in the
midst of a river, and he does not sink, and he converses with his spiritual
brothers and all the orders 172 of angels with true love. 173 And because from
time to time he casts the glance of his mind at the course of the sun and at

160 Gen 1:26.

161 Syr. shma d-alahuteh, or ‘his divine name’.

162 Ps 82:6. See the use of this passage by Evagrius of Pontus and Babai the Great’s discus¬
sion of it in his commentary on Evagrius’s Kephalaia Gnostica (Frankenberg, ed., Euagrius
Ponticus, 292-94), as well as comments on this passage at Becker, Fear of God, 182-83.

163 Syr. gphiphe. This term may be a rendering of some Latin or Greek term, e.g. Lat.
arcus. Compare this to Peshitta Job 21:33, where the same word means ‘clods’ (i.e. rounded).
The heavens are commonly understood as ‘vaulted’ in the Christian Topography (e.g., Cosmas
Indicopleustes, Christian Topography , 11:19-22).

164 Lit. ‘a palace of a kingdom’. Syr. paldtin , from Gr. palation. The number of words of
Greek origin in this particular passage suggests that it may ultimately rely on a Greek source.

165 Syr. triqline, from Gr. triklinos.

166 Syr. platawata, from Gr. plateia.

167 On the division between heaven and earth as two worlds and much of the comogony
found here, see Wanda Wolska, La Topographie Chretienne de Cosmas Indicopleustes, Theol-
ogie et Science au Vie siecle (Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1962), 37-61, 98-105
passim. See examples cited at Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography, III.408—10.

168 Syr. itawfiy) bet leh wa-l-naphsheh.

169 Syr. apadna. On the disputed origin of this word, see Michael Sokoloff, A Dictionary
of Jewish Babylonian Aramaic of the Talmudic and Geonic Periods (Ramat-Gan, Israel: Bar
Ilan University; Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002), 154. For
the heavens as vaulted and the solidity of the firmament, see Cosmas Indicopleustes, Chris¬
tian Topography, III. 401-02. Cf. Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 140.16-141.2 (trans.
124.3-18) for a similar notion of the firmament.

170 Syr . pagrana.

171 On crossing through the firmament, see also Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations,
18.12-29 (trans. 15.22-16.2), 19.13-22 (trans. 16.14-22), and esp. (trans. 124.3-18).

172 Syr. tegme, from Gr. tagma.

173 The word translated as ‘converses’ ( met‘ne ) can refer to sexual intimacy as well. This
may explain the emphasis on ‘true love’, that is, non-sexual intimacy.

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the changes of the moon and at the arrangement of the stars - things effected
by the working of his brothers 174 - lest he be envious of them and grow sick
from his corporeal service, 175 his Lord gives even to him from time to time
authority over them (i.e. luminaries) [347] that by his command they may
be led, as we see Joshua bar Nun, who confined one over Gibeon and that
other one he fastened over the Valley of Aijalon; 176 and Isaiah commanded
it (i.e. the sun) and it turned back ten degrees and he taught his mates that
the luminaries are creatures, not creators. 177

To put it briefly, in order to admonish him God gave him (i.e. the human
being) authority 178 over everything that exists in the heights as well as in the
deep, on the sea and on dry land, over the fish and over all of the creeping
things, over the domestic animals and over all of the wild ones, over birds
and over all quick-winged creatures, since he (i.e. God) wants him to use
them, whether as his food or for his needs or for his pleasure and likewise
also as his covering.

Human Fall due to the Deceiver

Because the mind did what was opposed to the first teaching that it received
and it put out its eye of discernment from the understanding of rationality
and it obeyed the words of its deceiver, that is, his older brother who first
sinned and fell from his rank, he who is a liar and the father of falsehood,
this one, who continually acts zealously within the sons of disobedience', 119
on account of this [348] a verdict 180 went out against him: You are dust

174 Cf. Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography, IX.3, 13-14; Narsai, Homilies on
Creation, 11.388-89; VI. 133-54. On Theodore of Mopsuestia as the source for this motif, see
Gignoux’s comments (Narsai, Homilies on Creation, 487-88).

175 Syr. teshmeshta pagranayta. The term teshmeshta is used often to refer to the liturgical
service.

176 Jos 10:12. See the use of this verse at Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography,
III.59

177 2 Kgs 20:11; Isa 38:8-9. The quoted words are closest to Isa 38:9. See the use of 2 Kgs
20:11 at Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography, VIII. 15.

178 This is also a theme in the writings of Theodore of Mopsuestia and Narsai. See, e.g.,
Narsai, Homilies on Creation, IV: 86.

179 Eph 2:2.

180 Syr. apaphasis. Gr. apophasis. It was standard to employ this Greek word in addressing
this part of the tale, e.g. Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 30.19, 88.25, 89.18; Narsai,
Homilies on Creation, 1.351, IV.224; Cosmas Indicopleustes, Christian Topography, 11.88. See
also the profession of faith from the Council of 585 {Synodicon Orientals, 135; trans. in Brock,
‘The Christology of the Church of the East’, 137).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 117

and you will turn back to dust, and you will eat the grass of the field. m
However, instruction and learning 182 he fi.e. God) did not withhold from it
(i.e. the mind); rather, in many variations 183 he confers upon him learning
concerning himself, lest when he neglects it 184 he perish completely and
become a vessel of harm.

Creation as Reading Lesson 185

Because the spiritual powers are prior in creation and more excellent in
substance, 186 God brought forth his teaching to them, lest they fall into
error and falsely suppose great things about themselves, when he wrote
a scroll of imperceptible light with his finger of creative power and with
(his) command, (a scroll) which he had them read with an audible voice: 187

181 Gen 3:18-19.

182 These two terms, marduta and yullphana, may not be simply synonyms, but are
employed to refer to profane and religious learning respectively (see 416 below). T reads: ‘the
instruction of learning’.

183 Syr. shuhlaphe. This idea derives from Theodore of Mopsuestia, e.g. On the Nicene
Creed , 151 (44).

184 Or ‘him’.

185 Theodore of Mopsuestia’s commentary on Genesis lies behind the understanding of
Genesis 1 in the following passage. See discussion in Becker, Fear of God, 122-24. The most
significant collection of Syriac fragments of Theodore’s commentary on Genesis is Sachau’s
edition (Theodore of Mopsuestia, Fragments). Fragments can also be found in: Raymond M.
Tonneau, ‘Theodore de Mopsueste. Interpretation (du Livre) de la Genese’, LM 66 (1953):
45-64 and Taeka Jansma, ‘Theodore de Mopsueste, Interpretation du Livre de la Genese.
Fragments de la version syriaque (B.M. Add. 17,189, fol. 17-21)’, LM 75 (1962), 63-92.
Quotations from the Greek text can be found in the Catenae tradition as well as in the refuta¬
tion of Theodore’s ideas in John Philoponus’s De Opificio Mundi. The angels in this passage
learn by analogy, an idea that also comes from Theodore’s exegesis. A comparison between the
creation and a reading lesson can be found earlier at Narsai, Homilies on Creation, 11.250-54;
11.352-57. On the following passage, also see A. H. Becker, ‘Bringing the Heavenly Academy
Down to Earth: Approaches to the Imagery of Divine Pedagogy in the East-Syrian Tradition’,
in Heavenly Realms and Earthly Realities in Late Antique Religions, ed. R. Boustan and A.
Y. Reed (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), 174-94. We find a critique of this
kind of reading of Genesis 1 in Gregory of Nyssa’s Contra Eunomium, ed. W. Jaeger (Brill:
Leiden, 1960), II, 227-61 (292-302) (=Migne PG 45.2. 987-99), translation in NPNF, 2nd
ser. vol. 5, 273-77.

186 Syr. usiya’, from Gr. ousia.

187 The ‘command’ seems to be God’s jussive statement in Gen 1:3. Scher translates this
line ‘...et a voix haute II le lut devant eux en disant’, apparently trying to avoid the oddity of
the angels saying ‘Let there be light’. However, God would say this before the angels say it, if
‘to cause to read’ ( aqri ) means to make the students repeat what the teacher says. In our own

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Let there be light, and there was light, 188 and because there was an under¬
standing mind in them, at that very moment they understood 189 that every¬
thing that comes into being comes into being from another and everyone
who is in authority is commanded by someone who is in authority, and from
this they knew exactly that that one who brought this excellent nature into
being also created them. Therefore all of them in a group with an audible
voice repaid their creator with thanks, as he (i.e. God) said to Job: When I
was creating the stars of dawn, all my angels shouted with a loud voice and
praised me} 90

[349] 191 In a similar manner we have a practice, after we have a child
read the simple letters 192 and repeat them, we join them one to another and
from them we put together names that he may read syllable by syllable 193
and be trained. 194 Thus also that eternal teacher did, after he had them repeat

classrooms we often hear the teacher say, ‘repeat after me’. God is specifically analogized to a
‘reader’ ( maqryana ), one of the offices in the School of Nisibis (the verb aqri with the prepo¬
sition ‘al is similar to the Arabic usage). This passage may contain an implicit spiritualizing
critique of the later reception of Jewish law since it alludes to Exod 31:18: ‘he gave him the
two tablets of the covenant, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God’.

188 Gen 1:3. Or ‘light came into being’. The passage seems to suggest that Syriac was
deemed the first language, a claim not uncommon in Late Antiquity, especially among Syriac
Christians. Milka Rubin, ‘The Language of Creation or the Primordial Language: A Case
of Cultural Polemics in Antiquity’, Journal of Jewish Studies 49 (1998): 322-28. See, e.g.,
Abraham Levene, The Early Syrian Fathers on Genesis (London: Taylor’s Foreign Press,
1951), 86.

189 The double usage of the root s-k-l (‘understand’) may be due to the suggestive false
etymology of eskole (‘school’) from this same root. See note 413 below.

190 Job 38:7. The use of this line from Job in this context derives from Theodore’s exegesis
of Genesis 1 (Theodore of Mopsuestia, Fragments, 5). See also Cosmas Indicopleustes, Chris¬
tian Topography, III. 13.

191 See the discussion of the following passage at Becker, Fear of God, 130-34.

192 Syr. atwata pshitata, a Syriac caique of the Greek td hapld stoicheia, which is used to
refer to the smallest and therefore indivisible components of matter in Greek physics.

193 Syr. nehge. The verb rendered ‘to read syllable by syllable’ may also be translated as
‘to vocalize’ or ‘to meditate’. See note 144 above.

194 Metaphors of reading and writing are common in the works of Evagrius of Pontus,
especially when he addresses the lower form of contemplation, thedria phusike. See, e.g.,
Evagrius’ Letter to Melania, Frankenberg, ed., Euagrius Ponticus, 612, 614, 616; trans. M.
Parmentier, ‘Evagrius of Pontus’ “Letter to Melania” I’, Bijdragen, tijdschrift voor filisofie
en theologie 46 (1985): 8, 8-9, 10, 11; repr. in Everett Ferguson, ed.. Forms of Devotion:
Conversion, Worship, Spirituality, and Asceticism (New York: Garland, 1999), 278, 278-79,
280, 281. Such metaphors show up throughout Evagrius’ works: ‘As those who teach letters
to children trace them on tablets, thus also Christ, teaching his wisdom to rational beings, has
traced it in corporeal nature’ (Parmentier, ‘Evagrius of Pontus’ “Letter to Melania” I’, 22). See

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 119

the alphabet, then he arranged it (i.e. the alphabet) with the great name
of the construction of the firmament 195 and he read it in front of them that
they might understand that he is the creator of all of them, and as he orders
them, they complete his will, and because they are quick-witted, they receive
teaching quickly. In six days he taught them a wholly accurate teaching; at
one time in the gathering together of the waters and in the growth of the
trees; at another in the coming into being of the creeping things; and then at
another in the creation of the animals and in the division of the luminaries,
with these then also in (the creation of) the birds of wing, until he made
them comprehend the number ten; 196 and he taught them again something
else in the creation of the human being; and from then on he handed over
to them the visible creation, that like letters they might write them in their
continuous variations and read syllable by syllable with them the name of
the creator and organizer 197 of all. And he let them go and allowed them to
be in this spacious house of the school, which is of the earth. 198 He entrusted
them with a vessel much greater than this sphere which makes the luminaries
to revolve, 199 in which they might continually delight themselves and not sit

also Evagrius of Pontus, Kephalaia Gnostica, 3.57 (p. 121); Praktikos 92 (trans. Sinkewicz,
Evagrius of Pontus, 112). For another East-Syrian passage describing this process, see Thomas
of Edessa’s On the Birth of Christ (S. J. Carr, Thomas Edesseni tractatus de Nativitate D. N.
Christi, textum syriacum edidit, notis illustravit, latine reddidit [Rome: R. Academiae Lynce-
orum, 1898], 27.15-28.5), and on this passage, see Paolo Bettiolo, ‘Scuola ed Economia Divina
nella Catechesi della Chiesa di Persia: Appunti su un testo di Tommaso di Edessa (f ca 542)’, in
Esegesi e Catechesi nei Padri (secc. TV— VII), ed. S. Felici (Biblioteca di Scienze Religiose 112;
Rome, 1994), 152-53; see p. 154 for a discussion of similar passages in Thomas’s text.

195 Syr. shtnd rabba d-tuqqaneh da-rqi‘a. We could translate this line more fully as ‘he
put the letters together with a great name which would lead to the creation of the firmament
and that name is “firmament”’.

196 Ten is also important as the number of categories or predicates in Aristotelian logic.
The number ten is significant in Rabbinic exegesis and also shows up in the ten sephirot in
Jewish mysticism. It appears especially in discussions of creation (Ginzburg, Legends of the
Jews, 5: 63, n. 1). It is also midrashically connected to the ten commandments (ibid. 3:104-06
and relevant notes). Furthermore, ten is the numerical equivalent of the letter yod, the first
letter in God’s name.

197 Syr. mtaksdnd, deriving from Gr. taxis.

198 This sentence is difficult. The ‘wide’ or ‘spacious house’ appears in Narsai’s Homilies
on Creation, I. 103, and seems to derive from Theodore’s exegesis. Another rendering could
be ‘in this place of the school, more spacious than the earth’ ( bet rwiha d-bet yullphdnd d-men
ar‘d). There may be a lacuna here, since there seems to be a verb missing. See also the Cave
of Treasures, III. 15 (24-25).

199 The text is awkward. T has a lacuna at this point.

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idiy 200 ]_[ e endowed them with quick wings, [350] by which they might fly in
this whole vehicle 201 of the open plain of air 202 and they might quickly ascend
to heaven and descend to earth, just as on a ladder. 203 And he gave them
freewill 204 that they might complete everything according to their desire and
that they might show their good will towards their master in their service
to us, as the saying of Paul: All of the spirits are servants who are sent into
service because of those who are going to inherit life. 205

Lazy Angels Cast from Heaven

Because one of them was negligent and did not want to read in this tablet
according to the names that were written by him (i.e. God), and he forgot
the meaning hidden in this book and he thought great things about himself;
moreover, he envied the honour of his younger brother, as his brothers who
were jealous, 206 saying: 207 ‘Why is he called “this image 208 of the creator”?
And why am I joined to the yoke of servitude to him and subject, spiritual to
the fleshly, powerful to the weak, light to the heavy, and engaged in empty
things?’ At that same moment that wise master beat him with hard blows
and since he did not submit to receive his punishment, 209 he took from him

200 As elsewhere, ‘to sit’ may have a pedagogical meaning, especially since the cognate
adjective of the adverb, ‘idly’ ( battila’it ), was used above for ‘lazy’ students.

201 This phrase is difficult. The unvocalized Syr. mrkbt can be either markbat, ‘a chariot,
vehicle, conveyance, ship of’ or mrakkbat, ‘composed of’ (both in construct state). Instead of
‘this whole vehicle of the open plain of air’ we could render this phrase ‘this whole (sphere)
composed of the open plain of air’. Also, the passage could be relying on this ambiguity: this
‘composed’ thing - note the use of the same root so important elsewhere in this text (see note
63 above) - is a ‘vehicle’ or ‘chariot’, which is a common usage of this root in near contem¬
porary Jewish ‘merkavah’ mysticism. Scher oddly translates this as ‘les sept plaines fluides
de l’air’ (350).

202 Syr. a’ar, from Gr. aer.

203 Cf. Jacob’s ladder, Gen 28:12.

204 Syr. mshalltut heruta, lit. ‘authority of freedom’, perhaps an attempt to render Gr.
autexousia or another technical term.

205 Heb 1:14.

206 Scher takes this as a reference to the envy Joseph’s brothers felt towards him (‘comme
les freres de Joseph qui le jalouserent’), but it is not clear how he came to this conclusion.

207 Cf. Narsai, Homilies on Creation , I.230ff; Cave of Treasures, III. Iff. On this theme,
see Gary A. Anderson, ‘The Fall of Satan in the Thought of St. Ephrem and Milton’, Hugoye
3.1 (2000).

208 T has ‘image and likeness’.

209 Beating was standard in ancient education, e.g. in Mishnah Makkot, 2.2, Abba Shaul
exempts from paying damages the teacher who strikes his student.

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his authority and threw him down [351] from his rank, 210 and he dashed him
with a great force down from heaven to the earth to this place of darkness,
to this dusty house, and he (i.e. Satan) continually acts zealously within the
children of disobedience. 211

Diligent Angels

Because the followers of Gabriel and Michael, 212 along with all of their
companions, were diligent in their reading and did not neglect that blessed
study; on account of this he admitted them and made them his chamber¬
lains. 213 Before him they stand continually and enjoy revelations of him, 214
just as Daniel said: A thousand thousands stand before him and a myriad
myriads serve him. 215 He divided them into nine orders 216 and he gave to
them nine ranks. 217 Although they are all one substance, 218 nevertheless
some of them he made ‘Seraphs’, who are interpreted as ‘the sanctifying
ones’; 219 some of them ‘Watchers’, 220 who continually keep vigil before his
lordship; some of them ‘Cherubs’, 221 who carry and solemnly bear the divine

210 The word ‘rank’ ( darga ) is another school term, e.g., Narsai, Metrical Homilies , 11.522
(p. 103).

211 Eph 2:2.

212 Lit. ‘those of the house of Gabriel and Michael’.

213 Syr. qaytonqane, from Gr. koiton with the Syr. qn\ ‘to hold, possess’.

214 Scher notes that this is in contrast to other Nestorian writers, who say that the angels
only enjoy the sight of God after the final judgement (note 1).

215 Dan 7:10.

216 Syr. tegme, from Gr. tagma.

217 The order of angels (Seraphim, Watchers, Cherubim, dominions, authorities, powers,
angels, thrones, rulers) differs in various Christian texts, all of which rely on Eph 1:21 (rule,
authority, power, dominion) and Col 1:16 (thrones, dominions, rulers, authorities). For example,
Pseudo-Dionysius has three separate triads: Seraphim, cherubim, thrones; dominions, powers,
authorities; principles, archangels, angels (with dominions and powers in reversed order at
Celestial Hierarchy, VI.2: 201A and powers and authorities in reversed order at VIII: 237B).

218 Syr. usiya’, from Gr. ousia.

219 Scher suggests that the author falsely derives Seraph ( srapha ) from the root s-r-p,
which means ‘to clear, refine, purge’ (351 n. 3). The etymology provided by the text seems to
be based upon the description of the Seraphs at Isa 6.6-8.

220 Syr. ‘ire, lit. ‘the woken ones’. Although this is an angelic being inherited from Second-
Temple Judaism, it is not uncommon to find etymological explanations for their name (e.g.,
Narsai, Homilies on Creation, 5:503-06).

221 Scher suggests that Cherub ( kruba ) seems to be understood here mistakenly as ‘culti¬
vator’ or ‘ploughman’ {karoba) (note 4).

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presence, 222 which is girt round with bands of fire. Now and then from it
(i.e. the divine presence) shines forth a powerful (light) 223 underneath 224 all
of them. Some of them he made ‘dominions’ over the nations, 225 and some
of them also ‘authorities’, 226 who are over the kingdoms, and for some of
them the name ‘powers’ 227 is appropriate, for they are able to accomplish his
commandment, and some of them he named ‘angels’, which are interpreted
as emissary [352] delegates. 228 Others he honours with the name ‘thrones’, 229
which shows the magnitude of their honour. These, as it seems, are more
honoured than all of them. For others the name ‘rulers’ 230 is fitting, for it
shows their authority over all. In brief, there is no one among them to whom
he did not give some honour in reward for his learning. In this way God led
this spiritual school. 731

Human Schools

Let us come then to this ( school ) of ours, and let us see how he led it and in
what way he dealt with it, and with what letters he composed names, 232 so
it could read and be instructed.

The School of Adam

Now at the same time that he made Adam and Eve, he caused to be made

222 Syr. shkinta. Obviously this is cognate with the Hebrew shekhinah, which is used in
similar descriptions of the divine hierarchy. The verb ‘to solemnly bear’ ( mzayyhin ) is found
elsewhere for the pomp surrounding the advent of the divine, e.g., the resurrected Christ
was ‘borne in a chariot ( markabta ) like a king’ (Addai Scher, ed., Theodore bar Kdm, Liber
scholiorum [CSCO 69; Louvain: Secretariat du CSCO, I960]: 170 [VIII:45]). See also note
201 above.

223 The word appears only in T.

224 Or ‘in place of’.

225 Cf. Gen 32:8 (LXX), but not in the Hebrew or the Peshitta versions.

226 Syr. shallitdne.

227 Syr. hayle.

228 The second of these two terms may be a Syriac gloss ( meshtaddrane) for a foreign
loanword ( izgadde ), which Payne Smith suggests is Persian ( Compendious Syriac Dictionary,
12), but Brockelmann ( Lexicon Syriacum, 9) posits an Akkadian origin, which is followed by
Kaufman, The Akkadian Influence on Aramaic, 38. It may be cognate with the Neo-Babylonian
ashgandu, which appears as a non-Akkadian family name.

229 Syr. mawtbe.

230 Syr. arkaws, the plur from the Greek arche. Eph 1:21, Col 1:16.

231 When italicized in the text, school is the translation of Syr. eskole, from Gr. schole.

232 See the discussion of ‘composition’ in note 63 above.

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before them in the order of the letters the wild and domestic animals, and
he whispered 233 in him (i.e. Adam) secretly so that he might read openly. 234
Adam read in this first tablet the names for all the domestic animals and for
all the wild animals of the field and all the birds of the heavens. Everything
Adam called them, 235 (each) living soul, that was their name. Because he
repeated these unwritten letters well in the composition 236 of exact names,
he (i.e. God) then introduced his school to the Garden of Eden and there he
taught him 237 the laws and judgements. After he (i.e. God) first wrote the
short psalm 238 about the tree, 239 beautiful to look at, so that he might read it
and know by it the distinction between [353] good and evil, because God
already knew his laxity, he warned him: On the day that you erase one of
the letters of this tablet and you eat from the fruit of this tree that will grant
you wisdom, you will die. 240 But he did not let him go only with this threat,
but he promised, as a master to his student and like a father to his son, that
if he should read and apply his mind to this commandment, and when asked,
repeat the names that he had him read as well as show all the letters as not
erased, he (i.e. God) would give him the tree of life that he might eat from
it and live forever.

But because his older brother saw his honour and the tablet that was
written for him, while he thought that now if he (i.e. Adam) read it as he
was commanded and repeated the names that were engraved in it, not only

233 The verb Vaz (‘whisper, make indistinct or soft sounds’) is used commonly for the
Holy Spirit. Adam is described as naming the animals and aided in this by the power of the
Holy Spirit in Rabbinic literature as well. For a number of parallels, see Ginzburg, Legends of
the Jews, 1:61-62.

234 There is a double meaning here since the Syriac verb qrd, ‘to read’, also means ‘to
call out’.

235 This is the same verb as mentioned in the preceding note.

236 Syr. rukkab. Again, see the discussion of ‘composition’ in note 63 above.

237 T has here ‘and wrote for him there’.

238 The Psalter was the preliminary text of study at East-Syrian schools. For example,
we are told that Mar Aba began to study it on entering the School of Nisibis (Life of Aba,
216.18-217.4).

239 The text seems to combine the tree of Gen 2-3 with that one described in Psalm 1.
The Peshitta version of the text reads: ‘Blessed is the man who does not walk in the path of
the wicked or stand in the mind of sinners or sit ( iteb ) in the seat ( mawtba ) of scoffers, but his
will is in the law of the Lord and he meditates ( nethagge ) upon his law day and night. He will
be like a tree which is planted upon the stream of waters, which gives its fruit in its time and
its leaves do not wither’ (1:1—3). The Syriac words in brackets may take on a special nuance
in an academic context.

240 Gen 2:17. The phrase ‘which grants you wisdom’ renders the Syriac word mhakmdnak.

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the name ‘image and likeness’ would remain for him, 241 but he would also
receive perfection of nature, like the Slanderer, 242 and the arrow of death
would not pierce him; on account of this he went and wrote another tablet,
which was contrary to that first one, and he accused 243 God in front of them:
‘Not true is this (statement) “you will die”; rather if vow eat from that tree and
transgress the commandment of your master, you will be as Gods knowing
good and evil ’ . 244 To such an extent did he make that tree desirable in their
eyes, like Jonah’s gourd, 245 that straightaway together they broke the yoke,
[354] cut the collar, and smashed the tablet on the ground and erased the
letters of the commandment. When that wise instructor came and saw that
the tablet was lying on the ground, that the letters were erased from it, and
that they were stripped and naked, 246 straightaway he beat them like children
and he expelled them from that school, 247 and he sent them to the earth from
which they had been formed that they might work and eat until they would
return to the earth from which they had been taken.

Cain and Abel 248

In turn, he made that third school, which was with Abel and Cain. He required
sacrifices and offerings as pay for his teaching, and because Cain imitated
his friend the Slanderer and was jealous of the honour of his brother, on
account of this he issued a murder sentence against him, 249 just as Satan

241 Here and elsewhere the text clearly maintains a theology of the image, that is, a theolog¬
ical perspective that emphasizes the human being’s status as image of God and the Christolog-
ical implications of this status. See Frederick G. McLeod, The Image of God in the Antiochene
Tradition (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1999), 43-85.

242 Syr. akel qarsa. This title is commonly used to refer to Satan, lit. ‘eater of a gnawed or
broken morsel’. It derives from an idiom meaning ‘to slander’ in several Aramaic dialects as well
as in Akkadian. For its Akkadian origin, see Kaufman, The Akkadian Influence on Aramaic, 63.

243 Syr. qatrgeh, the verb qatreg deriving from Gr. kategorein.

244 Gen 3:4-5.

245 Jon 4:6-11. See note LA 8.

246 The sense of this is unclear. In the biblical text Adam and Eve noticed their own nudity
and immediately covered themselves up (Gen. 3:7). However, the text seems to suggest that it
is God who noticed their nudity.

247 Syr. bet sephre is equivalent to the Hebrew beit sepher, the lower level house of
study.

248 A less-developed version of this pedagogical reading of the Cain and Abel story can
be found in Narsai’s Homilies on Creation, IV: 306^4-17. On the envy of Cain, see also note
LN 138.

249 Syr. gzar dina d-qetla. As in much of the Cause's protohistory, the envy as well as the

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murdered Adam, according to the Lord’s saying: That one who was from the
beginning a man killer and who does not stand in truth. 250 Because of this
also he chastened this one with hard scourges of movement and unrest, 251
and he caused him to go out from before him and he said to him: When you
work the earth, it will not continue to give you its power and because you
killed your brother, you will be avenged sevenfold. 252 See how he honours
the diligent student and what he does to the lazy one!

Noah

[355] In turn, he made a school full of beautiful thoughts, which bore the
sign of mercy to blessed Noah for one hundred years. Since he (i.e. God)
explained 253 to him daily the meaning of that glorious providence, and
because he (i.e. Noah) worked beyond his power and received the teaching
of the fear of God quickly and carefully, on account of this he delivered him
from the punishment of the flood. He appointed him to be a substitute 254
for the world and to renew that figured work 255 which had been erased. He
removed him from that accursed school in a ship bearing the world and he
brought him to this spacious plain full of all excellent beauties, and he bore
witness about this and said: Noah was a righteous and perfect man in his
generations, 256 and he promised to him that henceforth as reward for his
righteousness he would no longer curse the earth because of the human
being, but for all the days of the earth, sowing and reaping, summer and
winter, daytime and night would not come to an end. 251

legal decision in this passage seem to reflect the social interactions of the East-Syrian school.
A similar social dynamic may have existed in the Rabbinic academies. Cf. Rubenstein, The
Culture of the Babylonian Talmud, 54-66.

250 Jn 8:44.

251 The metaphorical ‘scourges’ (Syr. maragne from Gr. maragna) are the punishment of
wandering which God decrees against Cain at Gen 4:12. The term nawda (‘wandering’) derives
from this biblical passage.

252 This is a conflation of Gen 4:12 and 4:15 with an exegetical addition (‘because you
killed your brother’). The ambiguity in the Peshitta text of 4:15 is removed by the change from
the third-person singular to the second person. Scher seems to mistranslate this, ‘parce que tu
as tue ton frere, je te ferai payer sept pour un’. On the exegesis of this ambiguous verse, see
Glenthpj, Cain and Abel in Syriac and Greek Writers, 202.

253 Syr. mphashsheq, a school term.

254 Syr. hlaphta, i.e. ‘a remnant’. It is not uncommon to find this term used for Noah, e.g.
Ben Sira 44:17 and Aphrahat, Dem. XIII.5.

255 Syr. salmanuta, lit. ‘image-ness’.

256 Gen 6:9.

257 Gen 8:21-22; ‘cold and heat’ are missing from this list.

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126 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Abraham

In turn, he made another school in the time of the blessed Abraham. He
caused Abraham to go out from his land and from the house of his family,
and he brought him to the plain of Haran, 258 and there he taught him what
was necessary, and afterwards he brought him to the land of Palestine.
Because he tested him for a long time [356] and found him to be suitable
for his tutelage, 259 he consented that he might enter his cell and repose with
him. 260 In reward for his excellence he promised him that he would make his
seed as great as the sands on the edge of the sea and as the stars in the sky; 261
as he said: I know Abraham, that he commands his children and the children
of his house after him to guard the ways of the Lord and to do justice and
righteousness. 262 On account of this he gave him great wealth and crowned
him with a deep old age.

Moses

He then made a great school of perfect philosophy 263 in the time of the
blessed Moses. After he made the Israelites go out from Egypt and brought
them to Mount Sinai, he made Moses his steward 264 and placed upon him
some of his glory and splendour, and with troops and cohorts of angels
he went down to them in his love 265 to visit them and renew for them the
commandments and judgements; and because it was difficult for them to
receive teaching from that eternal mouth, therefore Moses was appointed
as steward of the school to transmit to them the life-giving sounds, 266 as
they themselves had requested: You speak with us and we will listen, and
let God not speak with us lest we die. 261 Because of this Moses would speak

258 Cf. Gen 12:Iff.

259 Syr. talmiduta.

260 Syr. qellayteh, from Gr. kella. This striking metaphor for the relationship between
Abraham and God seems to reflect the relations of monks and East-Syrian schoolmen.

261 Cf. Gen 22:17.

262 Gen 18:19.

263 Syr . philasophuta.

264 Syr. rab bayta or rabbaytd. This is a technical term for the steward or headmaster of the
School. It appears in a number of sources, including the school canons ( Statutes of the School
of Nisibis, 73-75). The term itself seems to derive from a non-religious context (Trombley and
Watt, eds., The Chronicle of Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite , 141). The Arabic equivalent of this term
is commonly used for the master of a household.

265 Or ‘in his love for them’.

266 Syr. qale, or ‘voices’; i.e. God would speak directly with him.

267 Exod 20:19.

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and God would answer him with a voice. Because he knew the harshness
of their thoughts and the tyranny 268 of their heart, for [357] they too like
their brothers 269 were transgressing his commandments and trampling on
his teaching, he wrote the ten commandments, which he gave to them on
tablets of stone so that they would not be erased, and he gave them (i.e. the
commandments) to them.

When Moses and his commander 270 (i.e. Joshua) began to go down
from the mountain and they heard the sound of the school’s clamour, then
Joshua said to him: What is this sound of battle in the campl And Moses
responded to him: Neither the sound of warriors nor the sound of the weak,
but the sound of sin I hear} 1 ' At that very moment Moses became angry and
smashed the two tablets. After he came to the school, he saw a mute teacher
(i.e. the golden calf) set up by them, 272 while they were making sport with
him as they liked, and they exchanged truth for falsehood, Moses himself
was removed from his stewardship, 273 and Joshua’s honour was taken from
him. 274 He was furious at this and beat that new teacher with hard straps,
and he cast him down from his chair 275 and laid waste to his body with a
file , and he scattered its dust upon the waters, and he gave it as a drink to
the ashamed students, and he raised his voice in the school and said: Who
is on the side of the Lord? Let him come to me. Then they gathered around
him, all the prominent brothers, the Levites. 216 [358] As it seems, their mind
had not turned toward error. He ordered them that each man should take his

268 Or ‘rebellion’. This word ultimately derives from Gr. turannos.

269 Scher suggests that this may be a reference to the people who lived before the flood.
However, it could also be a reference to contemporary Jews (note 1).

270 Syr. duks from Lat. Dux. A title which went into Syriac via its use in Greek in the later
Roman Empire (see Trombley and Watt, eds., Chronicle of Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite, 138), this
may have been an office in some East-Syrian schools. For example, it appears in the colophon
from a manuscript produced at a school in Tel Dinawar in Bet Nuhadra (British Library Add.
14460; Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum , 1:52-53; Hatch, Album
of Dated Syriac Manuscripts , 211).

271 Exod 32:17-18.

272 Syr. mawtab l-hon, but this could also be read as mawteb l-hon, perhaps meaning
‘giving them a lesson’ (lit. ‘causing them to sit’). This may be an early attestation of the tradi¬
tion that the Golden Calf was animated. Cf. Qur’an 7:148^-9.

273 Syr. rabbat baytuta.

274 The text is difficult to render with precision and may be corrupt. The reading ‘they
exchanged truth’ comes from T.

275 Syr. kursyeh. This seems to be an instructor’s chair or cathedra.

276 Exod 32:26. Certain members of the community are referred to as ‘the prominent’
(qrihe) brothers in the school canons {Statutes of the School of Nisibis, 102).

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128 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

sword and go back and forth from gate to gate in the camp, and spare not
even their brothers and sons. Because they fulfilled the commandment of
Moses, he said to them: You have sanctified your hands for the Lord. 277 They
destroyed by the sword anyone in whom there seemed to be some signs of
love for the calf after the drinking of water.

The mind of Moses was pacified. Then he prayed to their master again
in order to entreat him to be reconciled to his students and not consider
their foolishness, because they were children. After God had also accepted
Moses’ entreaty, he ordered him to make for himself tablets like those earlier
ones and to write upon them those ten sayings 278 and to go down and read
them. For the purpose of according honour to Moses, and as a sign that his
entreaty was accepted, 279 he poured on his face a powerful light and an excel¬
lent glory, and he entrusted the school to him and made him teacher in his
stead. He (i.e. God) recused himself from teaching those mad people, and
after he went down and had them read those ten sayings and they agreed to
repeat them and observe everything that was commanded, Moses himself
too, that novice teacher from the race of mortals, wrote them new command¬
ments, many [359] and more subtle than those (ten sayings), as he said: I
gave them commandments which are not pleasing, and judgements by which
they would not live ; 280 the human being who does them lives by them. 281

He led that school for a period of forty years in the desert of Horeb.
Anyone who had to ask a matter 282 from the Lord would come to Moses.
He would sit diligently from morning until evening so as to resolve their
questions and inquiries. 283 Anyone who disputed his teaching, he would have
them beaten with the hard scourges 284 of a sword. Some he would bring

277 Paraphrase of Exod 32:27-29. ‘You have sanctified your hands for the Lord’ is an
accurate gloss for the Peshitta Hebraism, mlaw idaykon, which in turn represents the Hebrew,
mil’u yedkhem (Exod 32:29).

278 Syr. petgamin, or ‘words, phrases, verses’.

279 This is an exegetical explanation of Exod 34:29-35, where the actual reason for the
light from Moses’ face is not described.

280 Ezek 20:25.

281 Cf. Lev 18:5. Scher also has trouble identifying this line.

282 Syr. melltd, lit. ‘word’. This resembles the Rabbinic usage of the term.

283 This clearly derives from an institutional context. Teachers and judges ‘sit’ (yateb) and
resolve ( neshre ) ‘questions and inquiries’ (shu ’alayhon w-zetemayhon, the latter deriving from
Gr. zetema). The question-and-answer genre was employed in the East-Syrian schools. See
Bas Ter Haar Romeny, ‘Question-and-Answer Collections in Syriac Literature’, in Erotapokri-
seis: Early Christian Question-and-Answer Literature in Context, Proceedings of the Utrecht
Colloquium, 13-14 October 2003, ed. Annelie Volgers and Claudio Zamagni (Louvain: Peeters,
2004), 145-63.

284 Syr. esqte, from Gr. skutos.

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129

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130 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

to pass that they be swallowed by the earth, others (he punished) with the
burning of fire, and others he would stamp excommunication upon them,
as he did upon Aaron and Mariam. 285 He restricted her so that she would
sit outside the camp for seven days and then confess her folly. Because he
showed this care for the school, at the time of his death, God ordered that
he not be buried by them, but he and his holy angels served him and buried
him on the mountain. 286

Joshua

At the time of his death, he handed over the school, as he was instructed by
the Lord’s providence, to Joshua bar Nun, his commander, that he might be
the teacher for it and do within it [360] whatever was proper. 287 Joshua also,
after he made them enter the land of promise and laid waste to the errant
nations before them, divided the inheritance for them justly and departed
to his Lord. Scripture bears witness about these things: At that time there
was no king in Israel and everyone would do whatever was pleasing in
his own eyes 288 until the time when Samuel was selected as a prophet and
David as king, and he (i.e. David) taught them in accordance with the former
teaching.

Solomon 289

In turn, the wise Solomon made a school. He taught those within his house¬
hold as well as outsiders, 290 as it is said: All of the kings of the earth came to

285 Syr. qataresis, from Gr. kathairesis. The phrase qataresis d-herma taba‘ (h)wd (‘he
would stamp excommunication’) seems to reflect some technical usage. The passage refers to
Moses’ dispute with Aaron and Mariam at Numbers 12.

286 This exegetical apology for Moses’ misdeeds treats as an honour what is understood as
a punishment in the standard reading of the text. For Moses’ burial by angels, see, e.g., Isho‘
bar Nun, Questions on the Pentateuch , 43.

287 Another example of a pedagogical interpretation of the relationship between Joshua and
Moses can be found in Thomas of Marga’s Book of Governors where Mar Maran‘ammeh and
Babai of Gebilta are compared to Joshua and Moses (Thomas of Marga, Book of Governors
174, trans. 347).

288 Judg 21:25.

289 The works cited in the following passage are appropriately those ones pseudepigraphi-
cally attributed to Solomon in antiquity.

290 ‘Outsiders’ (Syr. barraye), a caique of Gr. hoi exo, is a term used for non-Christian
books and thinkers, and therefore can be translated simply as ‘pagans’. See note 310 below,
and note LA 45.

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hear the wisdom of Solomon. 291 For because when he reigned 292 he sought
nothing other than the wisdom to hear judgement; on account of this God
also made him great and wealthy with it (i.e. wisdom) more than anyone
else, as he said: Behold I have given you wisdom, since there was no man
like you among the kings before you, nor after you will there be one like you
for all time. 292 Scripture bears witness about him and says: He was wiser
than everyone, and he spoke about the powers and activities of every body,
294 from the cedars of Lebanon to the plant 295 which clings to the wall, and he
spoke about [361] the domestic animals, about the birds, about the creeping
things and about the fish. 196 Sometimes he would call his student ‘son’ and
say to him: Listen, my son, and receive my instruction and the years of your
life will be many. 291 And again he would say: for everything a time, a time
for everything under the sun. 29 * Sometimes he taught about God and would
say to his pupil: Watch your foot whenever you go in to the house of God,
and go near to hear, sacrifices are better than gifts of fools. 299

Because there were many at that time who thought that they compre¬
hended and understood God, 300 as well as his power, his wisdom, and his
activity, he (i.e. Solomon) alone said: Not one of these things is compre¬
hended by the thoughts of creatures and fleshly things. I said that I have
learned wisdom. And it is far from me more than that which was farness,
and depth of depths, 201 that is, who will discover the divine nature? And who
is the man who will enter after the king in judgement, and then with the one
who made him? 202 The heavens are high and the earth is deep and the heart

291 1 Kgs 4:34.

292 Syr. qam b-malkuta , lit. ‘stood in kingship’. The idiom, qam b- (lit. ‘stood in’ or ‘arose
as’) can mean ‘to be occupied with’, ‘to undertake’, but is also sometimes used to render Gr.
proestdnai, ‘to be set over, govern, direct’.

293 1 Kgs 3:12.

294 The language of this inserted phrase derives from philosophical and theological usage.

295 The Hebrew (1 Kgs 4:33) has ‘hyssop’, but it is not clear to what plant the Syriac ( Iwp ’)
refers; cf. Low, Aramaische Pftanzennamen, no. 176. The word derives from a root which
means ‘join’ or ‘add’.

296 1 Kgs 4:31, 33.

297 Prov 4:10.

298 Eccl 3:3.

299 Eccl 4:17. The Hebrew of this verse can be read variously and the Peshitta rendering
is awkward.

300 The two verbs, adrek(w) and qam(w) ‘al, literally mean ‘tread upon’ and ‘stand over’,
thus further conveying the hubris of such action.

301 Eccl 7:23. See the discussion of this difficult verse in note 84 above.

302 Eccl 2:12.

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132 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

of the king and God is not investigated , 303

In short, in the time of his old age he convened and brought together to
himself the whole, entire people, and he taught about the weakness of this
(present) way of life, and he showed that it would indeed pass away and be
dissolved [362] along with the desire for it and that all of its construction
is vanity. 304 And counselling what is more advantageous, he says: Fear the
Lord and guard his commandments, because the Lord brings into judgement
all deeds, according to all that is hidden and revealed, whether it be good
or bad? 05

Prophets

In turn, the rest of the prophets also made a school, as we learn from the
story of the blessed Elisha the prophet. He, according to the tradition that he
received from his master Elijah, proceeded in this same path. For a long time
he taught in it what was necessary and needed, 306 as the scripture teaches:
The sons of the prophets said to Elisha: ‘This place here in which we sit is
too narrow for us. But let us go to the Jordan and let us cut from there, each
man one beam, and let us make for ourselves a shelter. You too should come
with us.’And he said to them: ‘go and do it; I am also coming with you’. 307
(This) demonstrated that the sons of the prophets built a school there in the
desert. On this account they went out into the desert: so that they might
collect their thoughts (away) from the clamour of the world and be able to
receive teaching from their master. 308

303 Prov 25:3. The Peshitta lacks ‘and God’. Scher takes T’s reading, ‘divine king’, instead
of ‘king and God’.

304 The text inserts Syr. tuqqaneh (‘its construction’) into Eccl 1:2. See note 33 above.

305 Eccl 12:13-14, but part of the passage is missing. Scher mistakenly attributes this to
Proverbs.

306 T reads here: ‘Again the blessed prophet Elisha made a school and great assembly,
according to the tradition he received from his master Elijah over a long period of time and he
taught in it what was just and needed’.

307 2 Kgs 6:1-3, but with some phrases missing. Again, as mentioned above, ‘to sit’ may
have a scholastic sense.

308 The Peshitta itself contributes to this transformation of the prophets into a series
of teachers and students. In 1 Kings Elijah’s ‘servant’ (Hebr. na‘ar, lit. ‘young boy’; LXX
paiddrion) is translated as his ‘student’ (Syr. talmida). This change is repeated in references to
Elisha’s ‘servant’ Gehazi (1 Kgs 18:43; 19:3; 2 Kgs 4:12, 25, 38; 5:20). Gehazi is also charac¬
terized as a student of Elisha in Rabbinic exegesis (e.g., b. Sanhedrin 107b).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 133

Pagan Schools 309

Lest there be a great burden in our speech, we shall abstain from (speaking
about) the many assemblies [363] that the rest of the prophets made, and
we come to those of the profane 310 and of the philosophers, 311 those who
also sought to imitate these assemblies which we have considered. Because
the foot of their teaching was not set on the truth of faith 312 and they did not
grasp the beginning of wisdom, that it is the fear of God', 313 on account of
this they fell from the truth completely. Because they compare things with
themselves, 314 they do not understand, but while thinking themselves to be
wise, they were fools since they feared and served creation more than their
creator. 315

For Plato first made 316 an assembly in Athens. 317 More than a thousand
men were gathered before him, so they say. Even Aristotle was there before
him. One day, while he was interpreting, after he looked and did not see
Aristotle, he spoke thus: ‘The friend of wisdom 318 is not here. Where is the
seeker of the beautiful? I have a thousand and not one, but one is more than
a thousand.’ 319

309 The author seems to rely on a doxographical document in in 363.7-367.2.

310 Syr. barraye, lit. ‘outsiders’. This term is commonly used for non-Christian books or
ideas. See note 290 above.

311 Syr. philasophe. Elsewhere in the Cause ‘philosophy’ is treated as something worthy
of aspiring to, but here ‘philosophers’ are treated negatively.

312 There is a pun in this line since the word for ‘truth’ literally means ‘solidity’ or
‘firmness’ ( shrara ).

313 Prov 1:7. The word rendered as ‘beginning’ is literally ‘head’ ( resha ).

314 Scher (as well as Ramelli, Causa della fondazione delle scuole, 145 n. 91) finds this
line obscure. Syr. henon b-hon, translated here as ‘with themselves’, may be a rendering of
Gr. en heautois.

315 Rom 1:22, 25. Romans 1 is an important passage for the natural theology promoted in
the text. See note 153 above.

316 Following T. C has an awkward plural at this point (‘ bad[w ]).

317 It is likely that the material on Plato at the Academy does not derive from the tradition
of anecdotes on him, but rather from the biographical tradition of Aristotle. This also occurs in
the Arabic sources, although there is also a distinct biographical tradition of Plato in Arabic.
See, for example, comments at Alice Swift Riginos, Platonica: The Anecdotes concerning the
Life and Writings of Plato (Leiden: Brill, 1976), 216.

318 Syr. rahmd d-hekmta is a caique of Gr. philosophos.

319 This anecdote derives from the biographical tradition concerning Aristotle. See
Baumstark, Aristoteles bei den Syrem, b-g and 1-130 and Anton-Hermann Chroust, ‘A Brief
Summary of the Syriac and Arabic Vitae Aristotelis’, Acta Orientalia (Hauriae) 29 (1965-66):
23-47. See also Diether R. Reinsch, ‘Das Griechische Original der Vita Syriaca I des Aristo¬
teles’, Rheinisches Museum 125 [1982]: 106-12) and Ingemar During, Aristotle in the Ancient

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134 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Although he (i.e. Plato) taught correctly about God and spoke about his
only-begotten 320 son as the word 321 begotten from him according to nature 322
and about the holy spirit as the hypostatic 323 power that proceeds [364] from
him, 324 nevertheless when he was asked by his fellow citizens 325 whether or
not it is right to honour idols, he passed on the tradition 326 to them that it is
requisite that they be held in honour, and he said: ‘It is necessary to sacrifice
a white cock to Asclepius’. 327 Although he knew God, he did not praise and
confess him as God, but he was lacking in his thoughts and darkened 328 in
misunderstanding.

Also about the soul he passes on the tradition 329 that it migrates from
body to body. Sometimes it abides in creeping things, at other times in wild
animals, sometimes in domestic animals, at other times in birds, and after¬
wards in human beings, and then it is raised up to the likeness of angels and
it passes through all the orders 330 of angels. Then it is strained and made pure
and returns to its place above. 331 Regarding women he commanded that they
be (held) in common, as the Manichees say. 332

Biographical Tradition (Goteborg: Elanders, 1957), 184-87, 469-70, but note the comments
on Diiring’s work in Dimitri Gutas, ‘The Spurious and the Authentic in the Arabic Lives of
Aristotle’, in Pseudo-Aristotle in the Middle Ages: The Theology and Other Texts, ed. J. Karyae,
W. F. Ryan, and C. B. Schmitt (Warburg Institute Surveys and Texts 11; London, 1986), 15-36
(repr. in Greek Philosophers in the Arabic Tradition [Aldershot: Ashgate, 2000], Chap. 6).

320 Syr. ihidaya, equivalent to Gr. monogenes.

321 Syr. mellta, equivalent to Gr. logos.

322 Syr. kyana’it.

323 Syr. qnomaya.

324 Other contemporary texts from the same cultural milieu also maintained that Plato
supported the idea of the trinity. Sebastian Brock, ‘A Syriac Collection of Prophecies of the
Pagan Philosophers’, OLP 14 (1983): 203^16 (repr. in Studies in Syriac Christianity, Chap. 8).

325 Lit.‘sons of his city’.

326 Syr. ashlem, lit. ‘handed over’, ‘transmitted’.

327 This saying attributed to Socrates on his death (Plato, Phaedo 118A) seems to have
become a commonplace. For example, Tacitus mentions it in his description of Seneca’s
suicide, which is clearly modelled on that of Socrates ( Annals, 15.60-64).

328 Rom 1:21. Again, Romans 1 is being employed to promote natural theology and to
condemn those who have been led astray. See note 315 above.

329 Syr. mashlem.

330 Syr. tegme, from Gr. tagma.

331 This description of metempsychosis derives ultimately from Book X of Plato’s
Republic, but through various intermediaries. The language of purification is similar to what
we find above (see notes 129 and 130).

332 It was a commonplace to refer to the sharing of wives within Plato’s utopian commu¬
nity as described in the Republic. The reference to Manichees ( manninaye) is inaccurate and
the author (or a scribe) may be confusing Manichaeism with Mazdakism, a tendency within

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 135

After he died, Aristotle received the assembly. 333 He turned and rejected
the teaching and former tradition of his master and established his very own.
With the other foul things he devised, he also said this: ‘Providence and
divine care 334 are only to the point of the moon, and from there to here he
(i.e. God) entrusted his providence to the authorities’. 335

There was an assembly and teaching also in Babel of the Chaldaeans,
those who for a long time have spoken falsely of the seven (planets) and the
twelve signs of the zodiac. 336

[365] There was also (an assembly) among the Indians and in Egypt,
those (peoples) whose perversity it is difficult for us to repeat. 337

Epicurus and Democritus too made an assembly in Alexandria. 338 They

Zoroastrianism that flourished in the sixth century. Patricia Crone, ‘Kavad’s Heresy and
Mazdak’s Revolt’, Iran 29 (1991): 21—42; Zeev Rubin, ‘Mass Movements in Late Antiquity
- Appearances and Realities’, in Leaders and Masses in the Roman World, ed. I. Malkin and
Z. W. Rubinsohn (Leiden: Brill, 1995), esp. 179-87; Ehsan Yarshater, ‘Mazdakism’, in The
Cambridge History of Iran, vol. 3, pt. 2, ed. Ehsan Yarshater (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1983), 991-1024.

333 We find similar terms in the Syriac translation of an abbreviated life of Aristotle: ‘When
Plato died, Speusippus, because he was his nephew, received (< qabbel (h)wa ) the residence of
Plato, and he sent for Aristotle that he might stand at the head ( nqum b-resh) of the residence
of Plato’(Baumstark, Aristoteles bei den Syrern, g lines 1-3). The use of qabbel here and its
Hebrew cognate in Mishnah Avot (1:1, 1:3, 1:4, 1:6, 1:8, 1:10, 1:12, 2:8) reflects the various
words based on the Greek root ydech-, ‘to receive,’ used in succession lists: diadechomai (‘to
receive in turn’), diadochos (‘successor’), and diadoche (‘succession’); see note SL 15. On the
idiom qam b-, see note 292 above.

334 On this term (Syr. btiluta), see Riad, Studies in the Syriac Preface, 85-86.

335 This is a common doxographical tradition. This simplification of Aristotle’s cosmology
has possibly been influenced by the Pseudo-Aristotelian De Mundo, which was translated into
Syriac in the sixth century (Paul de Lagarde, Analecta Syriaca [Leipzig, 1858]: 134-58). See,
e.g., A. P. Bos, ‘Clement of Alexandria on Aristotle’s (Cosmo-)Theology (Clem. Protrept.
5.66.4)’, Classical Quarterly 43 (1993): 177-88, esp. 180-82. The addition of ‘authorities’
{shallitane, Gr. drchontes) to this scheme is a later Neoplatonic extrapolation of the distinction
between the sub- and supra-lunar worlds.

336 Syr. malwashe. It is a commonplace to introduce the Chaldeans in any discussion of
astrology in Classical sources. Syriac responses to astrological fatalism are attested as early
as the early third century in Bardaisan of Edessa, ‘The Book of the Laws of the Countries’
or ‘Dialogue on Fate’, ed. and trans. Han J. W. Drijvers (Assen: Van Gorcum, 1965; repr.
Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias, 2006). See F. Stanley Jones, ‘The Astrological Trajectory in Ancient
Syriac-Speaking Christianity’, in L. Cirillo and A.van Tongerloo, eds., Atti del terzo congresso
intemazionale di studi ‘Manicheismo e oriente cristiano antico ’ (Manichaean Studies 3;
Louvain, 1997), 183-200, esp. 188-94.

337 The extreme criticism of and silence regarding these two ethnic groups may be in
response to their well-known zoolatry.

338 Neither Democritus (d. c. 370 BCE) nor Epicurus (d. 270) had any connection to

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136 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

said that this world is eternal and exists on its own, while saying that there
were fine bodies, which do not fall under the senses because of the excel¬
lence of their fineness. They name these things without body ‘grains’. 339
They say that these are inanimate, 340 without reason, without beginning,
without birth, and without end in their multitude.

There was also an assembly of those who are called ‘natural philoso¬
phers’. 341 These, too, established the beginning upon inanimate elements. 342
They deny there is a God or (divine) forethought, but (they say) that the
powerful plunders and the weak is plundered, along with the rest of the
things (they say).

Thus also Pythagoras, although he made an assembly and taught about
the one God, who is the maker of all and also its guide, he nevertheless
corrupted in other (matters). 343

Zoroaster, 344 the Persian Magus, also made an assembly of a school , in
the time of Bashtasp [366] the king. 345 He gathered many assemblies unto
himself and they received his error, since his teaching suited their blindness.
He taught them (that there are) four gods in one cohort - Ashoqar, Frashoqar,
Zaroqar, and Zurwan 346 - but he did not demonstrate their work and service.
Afterwards he affirmed two other gods - one he called Hormizd, the other

Alexandria. As atomists it is not uncommon for the two to be mentioned together, cf. Hermann
Diels, Doxographi graeci (Berlin: G. Reimer, 1879), 285-86, 316, 330.

339 Syr. perde, i.e. atoms.

340 Syr. d-la naphsha, lit. ‘without soul’, but in a philosophical context naphsha refers to
the ‘vegetative’ soul.

341 Syr. phusiqaye, from Gr. phusikoi.

342 Syr. estukhse, from Gr. stoicheia.

343 For another positive Christian perspective on Pythagoras (d. c. 500 BCE), see Sebastian
Brock, ‘A Syriac Collection of Prophecies of the Pagan Philosophers’, OLP 14 (1983): 203^46
(repr. in Studies in Syriac Christianity, Chap. 10).

344 Syr. Zardusht.

345 Vishtaspa, or Gushtasp, known as ‘Hystaspes’ in the Greek sources, was the semi-
mythical king who endorsed Zoroaster’s teachings.

346 Syr. ’shwqr prshwqr zrwqr zrwn. C has bdkshy, which is missing from T. The former
are the three hypostases of Zurwan, e.g., R.C. Zaehner, Zurvan: A Zoroastrian Dilemma
(Oxford: Clarendon, 1955), 219-25. At 439^40 Zaehner reproduces the translation of this
passage from Joseph Bidez and Franz Cumont, Les mages hellenises, Zoroastre, Ostanes et
Hystaspe d’apres la tradition grecque (Paris: Les Belles lettres, 1938), vol. 2, 100. Despite
earlier scholarly claims, it seems that Zervanism was merely a tendency within Zoroastri¬
anism: see Shaul Shaked, ‘The Myth of Zurvan: Cosmogony and Eschatology’, in Messiah
and Christos, ed. Ithamar Gruenwald et al. (Tubingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1992), 219^-0 (repr. in
Shaul Shaked, From Zoroastrian Iran to Islam: Studies in Religious History and Intercultural
Contacts [Aldershot: Ashgate, 1995], Chap. 4).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 137

Ahriman 347 - and he said that the two of them were bom from Zurwan and
that the one is completely good, Ahriman perfectly evil. These (two) created
this whole world: the good one, the good things, the evil one, the evil things.
After that, he spoke of twenty-four others, who in their whole cohort are
thirty, just as the number (of days) of the months. 348 He said it is not right
to slaughter animals because Hormizd is in them. Whatever is to be offered
as sacrifice, they ought to first break its neck with rods until it is dead, and
thus it (i.e. the neck) should be cut so that it is unaware while suffering. He
said that it is necessary for a son to take his mother in marriage, [367] his
daughter, or his sister, and the rest of the things (he said). He does not allow
the dead to be buried, but rather (he teaches) that they should be exposed so
that they may be torn to pieces by birds.

The errant ones made these assemblies. Although they 349 established
them on this pretext of being a benefit to themselves and others, they never¬
theless were found from the result of their deeds to be as error, destruction,
and ignorant darkness, because all of them together broke the yoke and cut
the bands of that eternal Lordship, as David said: The truth has perished from
the earth. 350 Jeremiah said: Lord, your eyes are upon faith, 35 ' that is, upon
the truth of your essence, 352 because while thinking in themselves that they
were wise, they were fools. 353 In another place he says: they were ashamed
of the thing in which they put their trust . 354

Jesus the Master Teacher

On account of this, the circumstances demanded that the illuminated mind,
the great teacher, the eternal radiance, the living Word of God, should
come. He renewed the first school of his father, which the errant ones had

347 Syr. hwrmyzd ’hrm. In Zervanism the forces of good and evil are born as twins.
Hormizd and Ahriman are later renderings of the Avestan Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu
respectively.

348 On the Zoroastrian sacred calendar, see, e.g., Mary Boyce, Zoroastrians: Their
Religious Beliefs and Practices (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1979), 70-74.

349 According to T.

350 Scher suggests this is Ps 12:2, but it more likely derives from Mic 7:2: ‘The pious one
(hasya) has perished from the earth’.

351 Jer 5:3.

352 This is the unknowable divine essence ( ituta ). Cf. Cause 335-7.

353 Rom 1:22. The section began above at 353 with a quotation from Romans 1.

354 Cf. Jer 48:13.

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138 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

corrupted. 355 He cried out and said to them: Come to me all of you who are
weary and bearers of heavy burdens and I will give you rest? 56 He made
John the Baptist a reader and instructor 357 and [368] the apostle Peter the
steward of the school , 358 as he said: The Torah and the prophets prophesied
until John? 59 Henceforth the kingdom of heaven is proclaimed and everyone
will throng to enter it? 60 Because of the great care that John showed for this
school - sometimes rebuking, at other times teaching, and then sometimes
reproving the evil and the lazy in the wilderness at the bank of the Jordan;
on account of this, he was furnished with the baptism of repentance for
the remission of sins. Our Lord bore witness to this: Among those born of
women no one arose like him. 361 After he (i.e. John) revealed and showed
that spring of wisdoms and that true teacher in the sight of all the crowds,
(saying) ‘This is the one who takes up the sin of the world’ ? 61 then all the
crowds began to throng around him (i.e. Jesus) and listen to his teaching.
The glory of John began to decrease and his assembly to grow small, while
that of our Lord became great and was added to day by day, 363 as he (i.e.
John) said: It is fitting that he grow and I be diminished? 6 *

After our Lord arose as 365 the head of this school and many crowds
gathered unto him, then he selected from them prominent brothers, 366 that
is, followers of Peter and John. 367 He had them go up a high mountain, as
his father did on Mount Sinai. There he taught them [369] necessary things

355 Christ’s capacity to renew creation is a common feature of Theodore of Mopsuestia’s
thought (On the Nicene Creed , 144 [39]: ‘He renewed also all the creatures and brought them
to a new and higher creation [tuqqana] ’, or 181 [68]) and is found in the ‘cause’ literature, e.g.,
Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 89.7-21 (trans. 77.11-24).

356 Mt 11:29.

357 These are both offices at the East-Syrian school. The former is an instructor in reading
and perhaps preliminary interpretation, while the latter is less clearly defined in the sources
(Becker, Fear of God, 87-89).

358 Syr. rabbayta d-eskole.

359 Mt 11:13. The order of ‘the Torah’ (urayta) and ‘the Prophets’ has been reversed.

360 Lk 16:16.

361 Mt 11:11.

362 Jn 1:29.

363 This is the first of several instances where the author correlates the decline of one school
and the ascent of another. It is a rhetorically effective way to link the two and subject the former
to the latter. See also Cause 376 and 386.

364 Jn 3:30.

365 See note 292 above.

366 See note 276 above.

367 Syr. d-bet, or ‘those who were with’.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 139

about his father and about him, and about the manner and about the goal 368
of his teaching. He was interpreting 369 all of the difficulties of the Law and
he illuminated before them all the allegories and figures 370 of the Old (Testa¬
ment), as he said: I have not come to loosen the Law, but to fulfil it. 311

Just as painters depict the likeness, not with glittering colours appro¬
priate to the exact original, but with coal or with dark lines, and once it has
taken its nature and a form that fits the true image, 372 then they adorn the
image with bright pigments possessing glittering colours like the original,
so in like manner that great teacher of the world did. 373

What do I mean by this? For, behold, even workers of brass, when they
want to cast a likeness of a human being, they depict all the limbs on the
ground first, and afterwards they depict (it) in wax and balance the parts of
the body, and then they melt gold or brass and pour it over the wax. 374 When
the wax is consumed, at that moment the solid 375 and permanent likeness of
brass is cast, the wise not considering the destruction of the former likeness
as a loss. [370] Rather, this is seen as the wisdom of the craftsman, who
through the destruction of those former things sets up a true 376 likeness that
remains and does not come apart.

Thus also that master teacher first used this order according to the childish¬
ness of the students. 377 Because that likeness of true learning was about to be
melted and effaced, he sent his beloved son and he was melted and poured 378

368 Syr. nisha. See note 14 above in the introduction to the Ecclesiastical History of
Barhadbeshabba.

369 Syr. mphashsheq.

370 Syr . pela’ta, ‘parables, allegories, proverbs’, and teldnyatd , lit. ‘shadows, shade’.

371 Mt 5:17. The author’s understanding of the Sermon on the Mount as an exegesis of the
Old Testament corresponds to the original tenor of the Matthean text.

372 Syr. yuqna, from Gr eikon.

373 Following T. C has ‘worlds’.

374 Syr. qe’ruta, from Gr. keros.

375 Syr. sharrira can mean both ‘solid’ and ‘true’. This passage plays on this double
meaning.

376 See the previous note.

377 Syr. taksd, from Gr. taxis. This is related to the usage above (see note 56). God humbles
himself ontologically to speak to our ‘childishness’ ( shabruta). See also the use of a cognate
term above at 336 (note 90).

378 This passage is difficult and may be corrupt. In etpshar (or: etpashshar) w-naskeh (‘he
was melted and poured’) the same subject is employed first with a middle/passive verb and
then awkwardly with an active verb. The conjunction is found only in T. The verb etpshar (or:
etpashshar ) may also have a double meaning since it is also used for interpretation, though
usually only of dreams (‘he was interpreted’).

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140 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

his teaching upon that former likeness. 379 He revealed and spoke to us about
that true likeness of the trinity, the future way of life, the annulment of the
things of old, and the destruction of the weak things. He fastened in our mind
the exact truth, 380 as it is said: When he went down from the mountain and
many crowds gathered unto him, he opened his mouth and taught them and
said , ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’ , 381
and the rest. Sometimes, it was said, he boarded a boat and began to speak
his teaching in allegories to the crowds. 382 In turn, at other times in the temple
and in the synagogues he would do this, as he said to the Jews: I was with
you everyday while I was teaching in the temple and you did not seize me.™
To such an extent did his students multiply that from this the head priests
and the Pharisees were filled with envy towards him as they themselves even
said: Have you not [371] seen that the whole world follows him? If we let
him do thus, everyone will believe in him.™ Just as the likeness of brass was
the fulfilment of the likeness in wax, not an annulment, since although the
wax was dissolved, nevertheless its likenesses exist, so also the Messiah is
not a dissolver of the Law and the likeness which he made in it, 385 but their
fulfilment and completion, as he said. 386

When he was thirty years old, 387 he produced his teaching and he renewed
the former school.™ He established strong definitions of philosophy; 389 he

379 Behind this passage we can see Theodore of Mopsuestia’s notion of Christ as the
perfect image of God, e.g., Frederick G. McLeod, The Roles of Christ 's Humanity in Salva¬
tion: Insights into Theodore of Mopsuestia (Washington, DC: Catholic University Press, 2005),
124^13.

380 Lit. ‘exactness of truth’. The term ‘exactness’ or ‘precision’ ( hattitutd ) shows up a
number of times in this text and seems to be a virtue advocated in both teaching and interpreta¬
tion. Cf. Theodore of Mopsuestia, On the Nicene Creed , 160 (51), 174 (63).

381 Mt 5:2-3; Lk 6:17 seems to be implied by the descent from the mountain. It is not clear
because the Sermon on the Mount was explicitly referenced just above.

382 Mt 13:2-3. The beginning of this sentence is unclear.

383 Mk 14:49.

384 Jn 12:19; 11:48.

385 Or‘with it’.

386 Compare this to the citation of Mt 5:17 above.

387 Lit. ‘after the time of thirty years’; cf. Lk 3:23.

388 This is ambiguous since the adjective qadmaytd can also mean ‘first’. How it is trans¬
lated depends on whether it refers to the ‘first’ school of the angels at the time of creation, the
‘first’ school of Adam, or simply the schools ‘prior’ to the decline into pagan schools.

389 Syr. thume hayltane d-phildsophuta. The term thumd represents Gr. horns or horismos,
the philosophical ‘definition’. A ‘Book of Definitions’ is falsely attributed to Michael the Inter¬
preter ( badoqa ), a member of the School of Nisibis in the sixth century. Cf. Abramowski, ‘Zu
den Schriften des Michael Malpana/Badoqa’, in After Bardaisan, 1-10.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 141

resurrected wisdom, which had died; he gave life to the fear of God, which
had ceased; he showed the truth, which had been lost; in brief, all the species
of teaching he forged and fastened in the ears of the faithful, as the separate
parts of a statue. 390 He rebuked evil, put a stop to error, and condemned false¬
hood. After he wrote them a testament in the upper room at the time of his
passion, 391 he led his school and went out to the Kidron valley. 392 There he
taught them great, wonderful, and exact things all night long. 393 Because at
that time their senses were too weak to receive the complete teaching, [372]
he said to them: I have much to say to you, but you are not able to bear it now.
But once the spirit of truth has come, it will teach you the whole truth , 394

After he arose on the third (day), as he said (he would), for a period
of forty days he went about with them in the world and taught them many
things. At the time of his ascent into heaven, he chose from them twelve
prominent brothers 395 and ordered them (to do) what was necessary and
needed. He said to them: Go out and make students of all the nations. Baptize
them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teach them
to guard everything that I have ordered you. Behold I myself am with you
for all days until the end of the world? 96

Simon, the steward of the school? 91 he made head of all of them and he
ordered him to pastor and lead the men, women, and children. 398 After he (i.e.
Jesus) ascended to heaven, they also did as they were ordered. They went out
and preached in every place, as Mark testifies: Our Lord was helping them
and confirming their words with the signs they were performing? 99 after they

390 Syr. adriyante, from Gr. andrias, andriantos. This word may be singular or plural. It
is ambiguous since the Syriac plural marker is sometimes simply used to mark the eta ( e ) of
Greek words. In this case it would be a hypercorrection since the original Greek word does
not have an eta.

391 This is a reference to Jesus instituting the Lord’s supper and announcing the new
covenant (or testament) (Mt 26:28; Mk 14:24; Lk 22:20; Syr. diyateqe, from Gr. diatheke) at
the Last Supper (Mt 26:20-30; Mk 14:12-25; Lk 22:7-23), which took place in an upper room
(Syr. * eleyta , Gr. andgaion ) (Mk 14:15; Lk 22:12)

392 Jn 18:1.

393 On the focus on exactitude, see note 380 above.

394 Jn 16:12-13. The original text has ‘will guide’ where this text inserts ‘will teach’.

395 See note 276 above.

396 Mt 28:19-20. This reading is from T.

397 Syr. rabbayta d-eskole.

398 Scher notes: ‘Jean, xxi, 15. La version dite Pschitta porte: Pais mes agneaux, mes
moutons et mes brebis; les commentateurs chaldeans les expliquent par hommes, enfants et
femmes’ (note 3). cf. Ishodad of Merv, Commentary on Gospels, 3.225.5-7 (1.287).

399 Mk 16:20.

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142 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

had first made a school in that upper room, where 400 our Lord transmitted
to them Passover (as a tradition), 401 until they received the Holy Spirit. 402
Afterwards they came [373] to Antioch. There they made students of and
baptized many, as Luke says: Then the students were called Christians in
Antioch. 403

The Apostle Paul

After a short time, our Lord chose the diligent student and careful teacher,
Paul the Master, 404 to teach all the gentiles. 405 This one, who went beyond
both those before him and after him, brought brothers together in many
places and made a school, first in Damascus, afterwards in Arabia, 406 then
in Achaea and in Corinth, for two and a half years. 407 Then after fourteen
(years) he went up to Jerusalem and saw the Apostles and returned to his
work. 408 With much labour and fatigue he was fighting in his work - as he
said: Who is sick and I myself am not sick? Who is scandalized and I myself
do not burnd 409 - even against all the different heresies 410 and doctrines until
he changed them to the manner of his teaching. After he came from Corinth
to Ephesus and found there twelve people who were students of Christi¬
anity, he spoke with them openly for three months, as Luke makes known
in the Acts of the Apostles, and he was instructing them about the kingdom
of God. 411 Because some people reviled his teaching, Paul then distanced
himself from them. [374] He chose true students from among them and
everyday he would speak with them in the school of the man whose name

400 The text may be corrupt here since the particle d is only occasionally used in this
locative sense without the antecedent being picked up again in the relative clause.

401 Syr. ashlem is rendered more fully here in order to bring out its scholastic sense. Syr.
pesha, like Greek term and its Romance cognates, means both Passover and Easter.

402 Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 144-51 (trans. 127-33) expounds on the idea that
Jesus had to stay with them until the Spirit came.

403 Acts 11:26.

404 Or ‘Paul the Great’, ‘the Great Paul’.

405 Lit. ‘nations’.

406 Following T, since C has ‘Thrace’.

407 As Scher points out, there is a discrepancy with Acts 18:11, which states that this was
only for a year and a half (note 2).

408 This refers to the so-called Council of Jerusalem (Gal 2:1-14; Acts 15).

409 2 Cor 11:29.

410 Syr. he re sis, from Gr. hairesis.

411 Acts 19:7-8. This passage may be referring to Paul’s famous parrhesia (2 Cor 3:12,
7:4; Phil 1:20; Philem 8; Acts 28:31; also in the pseudo-Pauline texts).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 143

was Tyrannus. This was for two years until all who lived in Asia received
the Word of God . 412

For until this point we did not have the noun 'school' , which is inter¬
preted as ‘place for learning understanding’. 413

After Paul completed his teaching in every place, he was crowned with
Peter in Rome due to Nero’s evil. The whole group 414 of the twelve departed
to our Lord. Then the evil foxes began to peek out from their dens and were
seeking to enter and ravage the pleasant vineyard and to pull down that
former tradition which our Lord transmitted to his apostles. The side of
Satan began to grow strong; the school of the members of the household (of
the Lord) began to be brought low. When the master teacher saw that his side
had been brought low and that the side of his adversary had grown strong,
he then selected and established in his school skilful 415 teachers to manage
it according to his will.

The Post-Apostolic Schools

[375] Now that with God’s help we have arrived at this point, it is right for
us to show how a school began to exist after that glorious band of Apostles,
and at what time the scriptures began to be interpreted, by whom and where,
and then gradually we will be brought to this ( school ) of ours.

The School of Alexandria and Philo of Alexandria

For a great abundance of instruction was in Alexandria, as we said earlier. 416

412 Acts 19:9-10. The original text has ‘heard’ where this text inserts the more scholastic
‘received’.

413 Syr. bet yullphana d-sukkala. The term bet yullphdnd is commonly translated as
‘school’, but this would confuse the sense of the passage, which offers a false etymological
link based on a supposed shared root, s-k-l, between Syr. eskole (Gr. schole ) and the wholly
unrelated word sukkald (‘understanding’). An interest in etymology is not uncommon in the
‘cause’ genre, e.g.,Henana, On Rogations , 69.14-71.16, esp. 71.13; On Golden Friday , 62.1.

414 Syr. shi‘ta. This term shows up below and in the school canons for what seems to be a
certain liturgical practice at the School {Statutes of the School ofNisibis, 79).

415 Syr. mhire. This Ancient Near Eastern term originally used of scribes found its way into
Syriac, e.g., Jacob of Sarug, Homelies contre Juifs, 1.1—2; cf. Ezra 7:6 and Ps 45:2. See also
the Memra on the Holy Fathers below, lines 9 and 10.

416 The word rendered ‘instruction’ in this paragraph, Syr. marduta, originally referred to a
‘beating’ (cf. al-adcib in Arabic). It seems to represent Greek paidei'a, since it refers to learning
that is not necessarily Christian (cf. Life of Aba, 219.7). This passage may correspond with the
only other previous reference to Alexandria up to this point in the text, that is, the reference

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144 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Because of its renown and antiquity, they would come there from everywhere
to receive philosophical learning. Because reading is a habit in humans, 417
someone who had received Christian teachings happened to have 418 a zeal
for instruction, so that he even established a school of the divine letters 419
in this city, lest only the instruction of those (i.e. pagan philosophers) be
considered. Along with the readings of scripture he wanted to add interpreta¬
tion to them, as an ornament, that is, of the scriptures. On account of this he
introduced something illusory into the holy books. The leader of this school
and exegete, Philo the Jew, 420 invented it. After he was occupied in this craft,
he began to interpret (the holy books) allegorically, 421 while he put a stop to
the historical method completely. 422 Those wise men did not understand that
they should not teach only empty things alone [376], but rather (they should
teach) the teaching of the truth that ornaments the divine books. They loved
human praise more than the praise of God. A2i For this reason many would
come to Alexandria. That school of philosophers almost ceased and this new
one became strong. 424

to Epicurus and Democritus at 365. However, it is possible that the text is reflecting its source
(e.g. ‘as we said earlier’), since it is not clear why it states that Philo put a stop to the historical
method, the beginning of which was never mentioned.

417 Instead of qeryana, Scher supports the variant reading, meryana (from the verb marri,
‘to contend, strive emulate, imitate’; cf. mmaryana , ‘one who imitates’), found in T, although
this word is not attested and the verb is only found in the pa“el form (note 1).

418 Lit. ‘was found with’.

419 Syr. bet yullphana d-sephre alahaye. It is perhaps relevant that sephre, a term used
also for other forms of literature, is used here instead of ktabe, the term used more often to
refer to scripture.

420 Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE-c. 50 BCE), the hellenized Jewish philosopher whose
works had a major influence on Christian exegesis. C has mawdya (‘the one who confesses [or:
acknowledges]’) instead of yudaya, ‘Jew’. It was common in the early Church and the Middle
Ages to transform the influential Alexandrian thinker into a Christian. Theodore of Mopsues-
tia’s Treatise against the Allegorists, in Fragments syriaques du Commentaire des Psaumes
(Psaume 118 et Psaumes 138-148), ed. L. Van Rompay (CSCO 435-36; Louvain: Peeters,
1982), 11.15-13.24 (14.27-16.5): Origen of Alexandria went astray due to his learning the
allegorical method from the Philo the Jew. This text may be a source for the above passage.

421 Syr. peletana’it. See notes 370 and 382 above, where ‘allegory’ (pele’ta) is used in a
positive sense.

422 Syr. tash‘ita, lit. ‘story, history’. This is the standard Syriac term for the so-called
historical method. In general, see Frances M. Young, Biblical Exegesis and the Formation of
Christian Culture (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997), esp. 169-76.

423 Jn 12:43.

424 See note 363 above. Note the use of ‘elltd (‘reason’, ‘cause’) here and elsewhere in this
section in particular. It may suggest that an aetiological interest in the origins of exegesis and
the difficult relationship between Antioch and Alexandria guides this passage.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 145

Arius of Alexandria and the Council of Nicaea

After Philo died, the wicked Arius, who promised much instruction in the
divine books, was then present in Alexandria. When he was invited to under¬
take this interpretation, because profane 425 instruction had been received
by him, he promised also to interpret the scriptures. On account of this he
proceeded to the new invention of a corrupted faith. Out of his great pride
he said that the Son is a created being.

For this reason an ecumenical council 426 gathered in the city of Nicaea
concerning him. 427 That council anathematized him and was active there
under the authority of Eustathius, 428 bishop of Antioch, for three months. 429
It disputed all the heresies that had sprung up from the time of the Apostles
until then. There was disputation of all the heresies for forty days and the
replies of the fathers against them for fifteen days, aside from the canons
and the reasons for them, which were for three days. 430

Post-Nicene Schools

[377] After everyone went home, the blessed Eustathius made a school in his
city, Antioch, and Jacob 431 in Nisibis - since this holy man was also at that
council - and Alexander 432 in Alexandria, and others in other places, but we
do not intend to demonstrate all of these. Jacob made Mar Ephrem exegete,

425 See note 310 above.

426 Syr. sunhddaws, from Gr siinodos; Syr. tebelaya, from tebel, corresponds to the Greek
oikoumenikos, from Gr. oikoumene.

427 The First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE.

428 Eustathius of Antioch, who after serving as bishop of Beroea became bishop of Antioch
in the early 320s, only to be deposed after 330. He played an active role at Nicaea. His strident
anti-Origenism may explain the favour he is shown here. There is no evidence that he founded
any school.

429 Scher suggests ‘months’ as an emendation for ‘years’ (note 2).

430 On the reception of the Council of Nicaea in the Church of the East, see Arthur Voobus,
ed. and trans., The Canons ascribed to Marutha of Maipherqat and related sources (CSCO
439^10; Louvain: Peeters, 1982). I follow Scher’s emendation to the text (note 3). Instead of
‘days’, the manuscripts for some reason read ‘prophets’.

431 Jacob of Nisibis (d. 338) was the Nisibene bishop to attend the Council of Nicaea. He
became a representative figure of Nicene orthodoxy in the Syriac churches.

432 Alexander of Alexandria was bishop of the city until his death in 326. He attended
the Council of Nicaea and worked actively against Arius whom he had condemned at a local
council in 318.

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146 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Alexander Athanasius. 433 Eustathius was cast into exile 434 and entrusted the
assembly to Flavian. 435 This holy man made Diodore his friend and partner. 436
The two of them maintained the assembly of Antioch with the whole teaching
of orthodoxy, 437 since they did not fear the threats of Valens the King, 438 nor
the evil of the Arians, the errant ones, but they continued to complete their
labour sometimes outside the city, at other times within it.

School of Diodore of Tarsus

After Flavian became bishop, the blessed Diodore went out to a monastery.
Then Diodore maintained a school in that monastery for a long time. Many
gathered unto him from all regions, including the blessed Basil, 439 John, 440
Evagrius, 441 [378] and the Master Theodore, 442 and they were with him and

433 Athanasius of Alexandria (d. 373), the well-known bishop of Alexandria of the fourth
century, attended the Council of Nicaea as a deacon of his predecessor, bishop Alexander. His
works began to be translated into Syriac by the late fourth century. See, e.g., R. W. Thomson,
Athanasiana Syriaca I-IV (CSCO 257-58, 272-73, 324-25, 386-87; Louvain, 1965-77).

434 Syr. eksawriya’ , from Gr. exoria.

435 Flavian, bishop of Antioch (381—404), had to deal with the continuing schism caused
by the deposition of Eustathius.

436 On Diodore of Tarsus, see note SL 28.

437 Syr. drtaddwksiya ’, from Gr. orthodoxia.

438 The emperor Valens (364-78) was an Arian.

439 Basil of Caesarea (330-79) was an important Greek patristic author translated into
Syriac from the fifth century onwards and this is probably why the author wants to associate
him with Diodore. See, e.g., D. G. K. Taylor, ed. and trans.. The Syriac Versions of the De Spiritu
Sancto by Basil of Caesarea, CSCO 576-77 (Louvain: Peeters, 1999); Robert W. Thomson,
‘The Syriac and Armenian Versions of the Hexaemeron of Basil of Caesarea’ (Studia Patris-
tica 27; ed. E. A. Livingstone: Louvain; Peeters, 1993), 113-17, and R. W. Thomson, ed., The
Syriac Version of the Hexaemeron by Basil of Caesarea (CSCO 550; Louvain, Peeters, 1995).
For a general discussion, see David G. K. Taylor, ‘St. Basil the Great and the Syrian Christian
Tradition’, The Harp 4.1-3 (1991): 49-58. In the Life ofEphrem the eponymous hero in fact
travels to Caesarea where he meets Basil. For their meeting, see Life ofEphrem 643.11-649.10
(in Acta martyrum et sanctorum syriace, vol. 3).

440 John Chrysostom (c. 347-407). Despite his Antiochene tendency, his works were a
major source of exegesis and theology of all the post-Chalcedonian churches. His influence on
East-Syrian exegesis begins to appear around the time of the composition of the Cause. See
Molenberg, ‘Silence of the Sources’, 153-54.

441 Evagrius of Pontus (d. 399). He certainly was not a student of Diodore, but his popularity
in the Church of the East would have been an impetus for creating this fictional link between
the two, thus legitimizing Evagrius’ works.

442 Or ‘Theodore the Great’, i.e. Theodore of Mopsuestia.

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they learned from him the interpretation of scripture and their traditions. 443
For he was a man perfect in these two things - in the teaching of philos¬
ophy and in the explanation of scripture - more than all the rest.

Theodore of Mopsuestia 444

After this holy man (i.e. Diodore) was sought for the work of the bishopric
of Tarsus and each one of his students migrated elsewhere, then the blessed
Theodore remained in that monastery and for a long time he alone took
on the work of teaching. Not only was he teaching with the true word of
teaching, 445 but also with writings, at the request of the fathers. With the
strength of grace he produced an interpretation of all the scriptures and a
disputation against all heresies. 446 For until the time when grace brought this
man into being and to the abode of human beings, all the parts of teaching,
the interpretations, and the traditions of the divine books - in the likeness of
different species, from which is made the image of the King of Kings - were
dispersed and cast everywhere in confusion and without order among all the
earlier writers and fathers of the catholic church.

After this human being had distinguished the good from the evil and was
trained in all the writings and traditions of those of former times, then like
a skilful doctor, he collected into one whole 447 all the [379] traditions and
chapters which were dispersed, and he compounded 448 them skilfully and
intelligently, and from them he prepared (as a drug) one complete remedy

443 On this passage, see Reinink, ‘Edessa Grew Dim and Nisibis Shone Forth’, 85-86.

444 The Council of Bet Lapat of 486 affirmed Theodore’s position within the Church of the
East: ‘Nobody among us should have doubt concerning this holy man because of the evil rumors
which the heretics have spread about him. For he was reputed during his lifetime to be illustrious
and eminent among the teachers of the true faith, and after his death all the books of his commen¬
taries and his homilies [were] approved and clear to those who understand the wise meaning of
the divine Scriptures, and who honor the orthodox faith. For his books and his commentaries
preserve the unblemished faith, as the meaning which befits the divine teaching in the New Testa¬
ment. [His works] destroy and reject all of the teachings which strive against the guidance given
the prophets and against the good tidings coming from the apostles. If anyone therefore dares,
secretly or openly, to traduce or to revile this teacher of truth and his holy writings, let him be
accursed by the Truth [itself]’ {Synodicon Orientate, 211; trans. Gero, Barsauma , 45).

445 This refers to his actual teaching and may be rendered alternatively as ‘his true didactic
discourse’ ( mellta sharrirtd d-maUphdnuta).

446 For Theodore’s numerous works known in Syriac, see ‘Abdisho‘’s Catalogue, Chap.
XIX ( Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.30-35).

447 Syr. shalmuta, ‘harmony, agreement, whole’.

448 The use of the verb rakkeb, ‘compose, compound’, recalls its use above (see note 63).

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148 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

of a teaching, perfect in beauties; this (remedy) which uproots and puts an
end to the sickly diseases from the minds of those who eagerly approach its
teaching, 449 since although there are diseases and pains in our body, never¬
theless among all the pains there is no pain worse and more bitter to human
souls than the disease of ignorance. Just as those who make a statue 450 forge
each and every one of the parts of the image separately, and afterward
compound them one after another, as the order of workmanship demands,
(to make) a complete statue, 451 thus also the blessed Theodore composed,
ordered, fitted, and placed each and every one of the parts of this teaching
in the order that truth demands, and forged from them in all his writings one
perfect and wonderful image of that essence, rich in blessings. 452 What was
said of Solomon was fulfilled in him: He was wiser than everyone before
and after him. 453 He managed in this practice for a period of fifty years.
After he was led to the bishopric of Mopsuestia, he would prostrate himself
regularly at the grave of the blessed Thecla and from her he would seek help
so as to receive the power to interpret the scriptures. 454

[380] When he departed for his Lord, because the blessed Nestorius 455
was chosen for the patriarchate 456 of Constantinople, he entrusted the work
of teaching in Mopsuestia to Theodoulos, 457 his student, the length of whose
life, so they say, was until the time of Mar Narsai and Barsauma, the bishop.
These blessed ones went and saw him there and were blessed by him. 458

449 T has ‘writings’. Instead of the ‘remedy’, this whole clause may also have ‘Theodore’
as its subject.

450 See note 390 above.

451 T has ‘and they make a statue’.

452 See note LN 35.

453 1 Kgs 4:31.

454 On the cult of St Thecla at Seleucia, see Stephen J. Davis, The Cult of St. Thecla: a
Tradition of Women’s Piety in Late Antiquity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 36-80,
and Catherine Burris and Lucas Van Rompay, ‘Thecla in Syriac Christianity: Preliminary
Observations’, Hugoye 5:2 (2002). Barhadbeshabba, La secondpartie de I’histoire ecclesias-
tique, 515.6-9 says that Theodore was buried next to Theda’s remains.

455 On Nestorius, see note SL 41.

456 Syr. patriyarkuta, derives from Gr. patriarches.

457 Theodule, d. 492. ‘Abdisho‘’s Catalogue , Chap. XXI (. Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.37).

458 We have no evidence of Narsai and Barsauma visiting Mopsuestia. Such a visit would
have occurred during their stay in Edessa, although this is doubtful. Rather, the text may be
simply making more explicit the links between Theodore of Mopsuestia and these important
founding figures of the East-Syrian school movement. This story is repeated by a later source
{Chronicle of Siirt 2.1.114).

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 149

Even that Aksenaya, 459 the evildoer, bore witness about this, saying about
him that he was alive until his own time.

Although these (affairs) were managed in this way, nevertheless,
Rabbula, 460 bishop of Edessa, although from the beginning he demonstrated
an appearance of friendship towards the illustrious exegete and would
meditate upon his compositions, nevertheless because, when he went up
to Constantinople to the assembly of the fathers, 461 was accused of using
blows against his clergy, 462 and made the (following) apology: ‘Our Lord
also struck (people) when he entered the temple’, then the exegete stood
and rebuked him, ‘Our Lord did not do this, but to the rational he spoke
with speech, 463 “Remove these from here”, and he overturned the tables, but
the bulls and the sheep he expelled with lashes’, 464 he (i.e. Rabbula) buried
this hatred [381] in his heart, and after his (i.e. Theodore’s) death he had
his writings burned in Edessa, apart from these two (commentaries), which
were not burned, one on John the Evangelist and the other on Ecclesiastes. 465
These were not burned, so they say, because they were not yet translated
from Greek into Syriac. These things will suffice about him.

459 Syr. Aksnaya, from Gr. Xenos. This refers to Philoxenus of Mabbug (Halleux, Philoxene
de Mabbog, 14 and n. 16). This reference suggests that Philoxenus’ works were read at Nisibis,
despite his being an archenemy of Dyophysitism.

460 Rabbula of Edessa (412-435). On him, see note LN 73. Ibas’s Letter to Mari states
that Rabbula became an adversary of Theodore because he publicly opposed him (trans. Doran,
Stewards of the Poor, 171-73 and Price and Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon,
2:297). See Michael Gaddis, There is No Crime for Those who have Christ: Religious Violence
in the Christian Roman Empire (Berkeley: University of California, 2005), 259-60. Also, see
the late version of events in Michael the Syrian, Chronicle, ed. J.-B. Chabot (Bruxelles: Culture
et Civilisation, 1963), II: 424 (French trans. IV: 436).

461 It is not clear what council this would be. The author seems to be expanding on the
Letter to Mari.

462 Syr. qliriqe, from Gr. klerikos.

463 The sense here relies on the double meaning of Syr. mellta, since humans are mlile,
‘endowed with speech’ and ‘rational’.

464 The use of Syr. phragele, from Gr. phragellion (Jn 2:15), suggests that this passage
relies on the more detailed of the descriptions of the so-called cleansing of the temple from Jn
2:13-16 (cf. Mk 11:15-17; Mt 21:12-13; Lk 19:45-46).

465 Again, the author may be expanding on the Letter to Mari. For the former of these two
commentaries, see Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commentarius in Evangelium Iohannis Apostoli,
ed. J.-M. Voste (CSCO 115-16; Paris: Respublica, 1940); Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commen¬
tary on the Gospel of John, ed. and trans. George Kalantzis (Strathfield, NSW: St Pauls Publi¬
cations, 2004).

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The School in Edessa and Removal to Persia

But let us show then how this divine assembly was transferred to the land
of the Persians, and by what cause and by what means. The blessed Mar
Ephrem then, whom we mentioned a little earlier, after Nisibis was handed
over to the Persians, moved to Edessa and lived there the rest of his life. 466
He made a great assembly of the school there.

Not even after his passing did this study cease, but through the diligent
students that were his they made the assembly of the school greater by many
additions, and day by day it progressed due to the brothers who would come
thither from all quarters. When Mar Narsai, Barsauma, 467 who became the
bishop in Nisibis, and Ma‘na, [382] bishop of Rewardashir, 468 heard the
news of this assembly, because they were lovers of wisdom, at once they
went thither with the rest.

Qyora

The head and exegete of that school was an enlightened man whose name
was Qyora, who was completely a person of God. 465 To such an extent was
this man swallowed up by love for the business (of the school), that he
embraced the complete practice of interpretation, 470 of reading instruction, 471
and of vocalization, 472 as well as church homily. 473 Although he was fasting
and abstinent, nevertheless he would strenuously complete all this labour.
However, in this one thing he was anxious: up to then the interpretations of
the Exegete were not translated into the Syriac tongue, but rather he would
interpret extemporaneously from the traditions of Mar Ephrem. These, as
they say, were transmitted from Addai the Apostle, 474 who was in early times

466 Lit. ‘all the time of his life’. This more literal rendering may be correct, since it is
possible that any information on Ephrem comes through the Edessene tradition, where little is
known of his life in Nisibis. In the Vita tradition, for example, his life in Nisibis is given short
shrift. The city of Nisibis was part of the capitulation the new emperor Jovian made to the
Persians after Julian the Apostate’s defeat in 363 CE.

467 See note LN 65.

468 Syr. wrdshyr. On Ma‘na, see note SL 66.

469 See the comparison of this text with a similar passage in the Ecclesiastical History in
Appendix III (cf. Voobus, History , 10-11, 14, 61, 64).

470 Syr. mphashshqdnutd.

471 Syr. maqryanutd.

472 Syr. mhaggyanuta, or ‘basic literacy’, or ‘spelling’.

473 Syr. amoruta d- ‘edta.

474 By the fifth century, Addai was commonly understood to be the apostle who founded

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 151

the founder 475 of that assembly of Edessa, because he and his student went to
Edessa and planted there this good seed. For also what we call the tradition
of the school, we do not mean the interpretation of the Exegete, but rather
these other things that were transmitted from mouth to ear of old. 476 Then
[383] afterwards the blessed Mar Narsai mixed them into his homilies 477 and
the rest of his writings.

After the interpretation of Theodore went into Syriac, then also it was
transmitted to the assembly of Edessa, then that man took his rest with the
whole assembly of brethren. After these holy ones were in that assembly
at the feet of the blessed one for a long time, they received from him the
interpretation of the divine books and their traditions. They read and were
instructed also in the books of the Exegete.

Narsai

After that man, the exegete of the school, took his rest, then the whole
brotherhood asked Mar Narsai to stand at the head of the assembly 478 and to
fulfil its needs, because among all of them there was no one there like him.
When Mar Narsai refused, he said to them: ‘I myself am not able to bear
the whole labour of the school as our master did. For he was rich in two
things: in bodily health and in spiritual grace with old age. But if you make
(someone else) reader and elementary instructor, perhaps I will be able to
interpret.’ After they did everything that he asked, then that blessed man led

the Christian community in Edessa, e.g. Doctrine ofAddai, ed. and trans. G. Phillips (London:
Triibner, 1876); repr. with new translation, G. Howard (Texts and Translations 16; Ann Arbor:
Scholars Press, 1981). See Ramelli, Causa della fondazione delle scuole, 157 n. 165.

475 Syr. nasoba , lit. ‘planter’. There is a play on words here with the name of the city
Nisibis ( nsibin ). The vegetative metaphor continues further on in this passage.

476 There seems to have been a specific ‘tradition’ of the School, which was occasionally
passed on separately, even in later periods (e.g., Isho‘ bar Nun, Questions on the Pentateuch ,
36). See Lucas Van Rompay, ‘Quelques remarques sur la tradition syriaque de 1’oeuvre exege-
tique de Theodore de Mopsueste’, in Symposium Syriacum IV 1984, ed. H. J. W. Drijvers et
al. (OCA 229; Rome, 1987), 33-43. Also, Gerrit J. Reinink, ‘The Lamb on the Tree: Syriac
Exegesis and anti-Islamic Apologetics’, in The Sacrifice of Isaac: TheAqedah (Genesis 22) and
its Interpretations, ed. E. Noort and E. Tigchelaar (Leiden: Brill, 2002) (repr. in Reinink, Syriac
Christianity under Late Sasanian and Early Islamic Rule, Chap. 15), 115-17, 122-23.

477 Syr. memre, here probably ‘metrical homilies’. For a list of incipits of Narsai’s
published metrical homilies, see Sebastian P. Brock, ‘The Published Verse Homilies of Isaac
of Antioch, Jacob of Serugh, and Narsai: Index of Incipits’, Journal of Semitic Studies 32.2
(1987): 279-313.

478 See notes 292 and 333 above.

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152 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

the assembly for a period of twenty years, while daily leading the choir and
giving interpretation. 479

[384] Then Barsauma came to Nisibis and was chosen to be bishop.
Ma‘na 480 went to Persia and received there the yoke of priesthood.

When the business of the assembly was proceeding in order, then Satan
troubled and mixed them up, as is his habit. When Mar Narsai migrated from
there, he came to Nisibis and settled in the Monastery of the Persians. 481 For
his thought was to go down to Persia. Barsauma, after he heard this, sent
his archdeacon 482 and he ordered that he enter the city with great honour.
After he entered and the two of them greeted one another and attended to
one another for a few days, Barsauma entreated him, if he desired, to settle 483
there and to make an assembly of the school in that city, while (Barsauma)
would help him with all the necessities. As it was difficult in the eyes of Mar
Narsai, then Barsauma said to him: ‘Do not think that your removal from
Edessa and the scattering of the assembly were accidental, 484 oh my brother,
but rather [385] that it was the providence of God. If it is (the case) that
you should liken this to that which occurred in Jerusalem after the ascen¬
sion of our Lord, you would not be mistaken. For also the band of Apostles
was there and the gift of the spirit and the signs which were done and the
different powers. Because they were not worthy, their house was forsaken
desolate, 4 * 5 according to the saviour’s word. 486 The Apostles then went out
to the ways of the Gentiles and to the narrow paths 487 of paganism, and

479 Syr. emar si‘ta w-pushshaqa, lit. ‘he spoke choir and interpretation’. See note 29 in the
introduction to this volume.

480 On Ma‘na, see note SL 66.

481 Since Nisibis was within the Persian Empire, the name of this monastery suggests that
it had an ethnic component. Having a Persian name, Narsai himself was perhaps ethnically a
Persian and therefore went to a Persian monastery. On ethnic monasteries and schools in the
region, see Becker, Fear of God, 64-68.

482 Syr. arkidyaqdwn, from Gr. archidiakonos.

483 This is probably the correct translation, but there is the possibility that this word, which
literally means ‘to sit’, should be rendered as ‘study’ or ‘teach’, following scholastic usage (cf.
Syr. maxvtba and the Hebrew cognate, yeshivah). See notes 200 and 307 above.

484 Syr. shhima , lit. ‘black, blackened’, then ‘common, rough, simple, ordinary, lay, secular’.

485 Mt 23:38.

486 The ‘they’ here is an elliptical reference to the Jews. The destruction of the Temple and
its prediction by Jesus (as depicted in the Gospels) are common tropes in the early Christian
anti-Jewish tradition.

487 Lk 14:23. Syr. bet syage, lit. ‘places of walls, hedges, enclosures’, represents Gr.
phragmoL

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 153

gathered everyone whom they found, good and evil. m They made students,
baptized and taught, and in a short time the gospel of our Lord flew through
all the world. It seems to me that the scattering of this (i.e. your) assembly
is similar. 489 If you listen to me and settle 490 here, everywhere there will be
a great benefit from you. For there is no city in the Persian realm able to
receive you like this one. It is a great city, set in the borderlands, and from
all regions they (i.e. people) are gathered unto it. When they hear that there
is an assembly here, especially that you yourself are its leader, many will
throng here, especially because now heresy has begun openly to gaze out
from its surroundings in Mesopotamia. You will be as a shield to us and a
strenuous labourer. Perhaps between you and me [386] we will be able to
expel evil from our midst. For it is said: Two good men are better than one,
in that there is a better reward in their labuor. If one becomes strong, two of
them will stand against him.’ 491

After he (i.e. Barsauma) put his (i.e. Narsai’s) mind to rest with
(words) such as these, then he (i.e. Narsai) consented to do this. At once
he commanded and did all the things that were necessary and useful for the
school. In a short time they increased to such an extent - not only Persian
and Syrian brothers who were near by, but also a majority of that assembly
of Edessa came to it - so that as a result glory ascended to God. From this
cause 492 also assemblies increased in the Persian realm. Edessa grew dark
and Nisibis grew light. The Roman realm was filled with error, and the
Persian realm with knowledge of the fear of God. 493 He led this assembly
for forty-five years 494 He also composed up to three hundred homilies, and
more including his other writings.

[387] Barsauma composed many commentaries 495 along with other
teachings. The two of them, according to the will of God, were led away
and migrated to their Lord. For it is not our intention to speak about their
way of life, but the manner of their teaching.

488 Mt 22:10.

489 The syntax is not exactly clear.

490 Lit. ‘sit’. See note 483 above.

491 Eccl 4:9.

492 This is the same word (Syr. ‘ ellta ) from which the ‘cause’ genre receives its name. We
can see here the aetiological interest of the genre as a whole.

493 See note 363 above concerning the trope of reversal.

494 See note LN 180.

495 Syr. turgdme.

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154 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Elisha bar Qozbaye

Mar Elisha from the village of Qozb, 496 a great man, trained in ah the subjects
of the ecclesiastical and profane books, received the work of interpretation.
(It was) for seven years. He also composed many writings: a refutation of the
charges of Magianism, 497 a disputation against heretics, commentaries 498 on
ah the books of the Old (Testament) according to the Syriac tongue.

Abraham and John of Bet Rabban

After this blessed man was gathered unto his fathers in peace and in deep
old age, then Mar Abraham 499 received his labour - servant, 500 kin, and [388]
cellmate of Mar Narsai. 501 This man, so they say, they would formerly call
Narsai, and after his father brought him to this blessed man, he changed his
name and called him Abraham.

Furthermore, they say of John of Bet Rabban 502 that his former name was
Abraham. After he came to them, they called him John, so that he would not
be called by the name of his master, and John, so that he would not be called
by the name of his partner. 503 Because the two of them drank from the spring
of wisdoms, 504 on account of this, these men were able to lead this assembly
in all (matters) of the fear of God.

For John also laboured a great labour in this assembly. If it is right to
speak the truth - all the beautiful arrangements 505 that are in it come from

496 Syr. bar Qozbaye. On Elisha, see note LA 24.

497 Syr. shraya d-zeteme (Gr. zetema ) da-mgushuta. The ‘charges’ would have been against
Christianity. See also note 283 above.

498 Syr. mashlmanwata, the same word is translated as ‘traditions’ above.

499 Abraham of Bet Rabban, d. 569.

500 Syr. talyeh, lit. ‘his young man’.

501 The term for cellmate, Syr. bar qellaytd, may be a mistake for bar qriteh, lit. ‘son of
his village’, which we find in the Life of Abraham of Beth Rabban, 616 above (see the synoptic
comparison of these two passages in Appendix III). This possible mistake appears also in
Chronicle of Siirt 2.1.114. See 356 above where sharing a cell is used as way of describing
Abraham’s relationship with God.

502 John of Bet Rabban. Not much is known of him. Numerous works are attributed to
him by ‘Abdisho‘, Catalogue, Chap. LVI (Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.72). See also Voobus,
History, 211-22; Baumstark, Geschichte, 115-16.

503 The redundancy of this sentence is obscure. Syr. habra means ‘friend, partner,
companion’ and its Hebrew and Babylonian Jewish Aramaic equivalents are commonly used
in Rabbinic literature for study partners.

504 See above at 368 where this term is used for John the Baptist.

505 Syr. tukkase, deriving from Gr. taxis.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 155

this holy man. He also composed interpretations of and commentaries 506 on
the books, a disputation against the Jews, and a refutation of Eutyches. 507
Indeed three homilies 508 were composed as well by him, one when Khusrau
conquered Najran, 509 because he was there at the court 510 at that time on
account of a suit for the school, one of prayer, 511 and the other on the plague,
along with the other writings.

[389] After he went to rest due to the great plague, 512 all of the burden
remained on Mar Abraham. With great fasting, continual prayer, strenuous
vigils, and constant labours night and day, he led the assembly for a period of
sixty years, while interpreting, leading the choir, 513 and resolving questions. 514
He also composed commentaries 515 on the Prophets, Ben Sirach, Joshua bar
Nun, and Judges. 516 What labours he laboured because of the school, what
buildings he built, and what benefits he benefited it with, 517 the matter does
not need our speech, since deeds are more apparent and brilliant than the
rays of the sun and all the land of the Persians was illuminated with his
teaching. Like Abraham, the first of the fathers, 518 he was also father of many

506 Syr. mashlmanwata.

507 On Eutyches, see note SL 44.

508 Syr. memre.

509 Khusrau I Anushirvan (‘The Immortal Soul’) reigned 531-79. On him, see Arthur
Christensen, L’lran sous les Sassanides (Osnabriick: Otto Zeller, 1971), 363^440. The
Sasanians expanded in the sixth century into South Arabia, e.g.. Winter and Dignas, Rom unci
das Perserreich, 131-33.

510 Lit. ‘at the gate’. It was common in the ancient and medieval Near East to use terms
meaning ‘door’ or ‘gate’ to refer to the king’s court (e.g. Arabic and Ottoman Bab), which
would here be Seleucia-Ctesiphon. However, on the mobility of the ‘Porte’, see Florence
Jullien, ‘Parcours a travers VHistoire d’Isd‘sabran, martyr sous Kosrau II’, in Contributions
a Vhistoire et la geographie historique de VEmpire Sassanide, ed. Rika Gyselen (Bures-sur-
Yvette: Group pour l’Etude de la Civilisation du Moyen-Orient, 2004), 179-80.

511 Syr. ba ‘utd. This often refers to intercessory prayer.

512 This was no doubt related to the ‘Justinianic’ plague of the sixth century. In general,
see Lawrence I. Conrad, ‘Epidemic disease in central Syria in the late sixth century: some
new insights from the verse of Hassan ibn Thabit’, Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies 18
(1994): 12-58. See Vdobus, History, 220 for using this to date his death. Ramelli, Causa della
fondazione delle scuole, 162 n. 180, suggests that this is the plague that occurred under the
Catholicoi Joseph and Ezekiel (552-80).

513 See Cause 383 and note 29 in the introduction to this volume.

514 Syr. share shu’ale. See note 283 above.

515 Syr . mshalmanwata.

516 On his works, see ‘Abdisho‘’s Catalogue, Chap. LV (Bibliotheca Orientalis III. 1.71).

517 On Abraham’s building projects and work at the school, see the ‘Life’ above.

518 Lit. ‘head of the fathers’. For the same expression, see note SL 5 and note LA 77.

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156 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

nations, begot spiritual sons without limit, and took up a beautiful name in
the two kingdoms of the Romans and the Persians.

Isho‘yahb of Arzon

After this holy, blessed father was also gathered unto the storehouse
of heavenly life, as the bringing in of a heap of grain in its time, 519 Mar
Isho‘yahb the Arzonite received his practice and worked [390] in it vigor¬
ously for two years. Then he became weary from it and went and became
bishop in Arzon. Afterwards he was chosen for the patriarchal duty. 520

Abraham of Nisibis

Mar Abraham the Nisibene received the chair of interpretation - a great
man, learned in all things, zealous, diligent, and a teacher of the fear of
God, hardworking as well as careful. After he worked with this spiritual
talent and drew with this same yoke for one year, he also departed to his
spiritual fathers.

Henana of Adiabene

Mar Henana the Adiabenene 521 received his rank, this man who was adorned
with all (virtues), 522 with humility, and with instruction in all the rest of the
matters that the labour of interpretation requires. If someone should say that
he was chosen for this from the beginning, he would not be wrong. This is
certain from the manifest result of his deeds, since he was tested and proven
in many things. Although this man’s whole quiver sufficed against the flock
of Satan, the Slanderer incited against him much quarreling, great strife,
clamour, controversies and schisms without end, but that hidden providence
did not allow [391] one of the arrows of the evil one to pierce him. Rather,
while placing his foot on the rock of faith and setting his shoulder to spiritual

519 Abraham died in 569 CE.

520 Lit. ‘the work of the patriarchate’ (‘bada d-patriyarkutd). Isho'yahb I became Catholicos
of the Church of the East in 582. See Baumstark, Geschichte , 126.

521 Henana of Adiabene, the controversial head of the School of Nisibis from 571 to c.
612. Two extant instances of the ‘cause’ genre are attributed to him: On Golden Friday and On
Rogations in Scher, ed., Traites, 53-82). On the events during his tenure of office which may
have led to the decline of the School, see Becker, Fear of God, 198-202.

522 See note LN 74.

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 157

labour, he worked in the spiritual arena, 523 continually without cessation and
without negligence, according to the divine will, while being occupied with
and meditating upon the reading of the scriptures and their interpretation, 524
day and night, reading and offering everything to this practice, as the blessed
Paul did. Because of his great love for the matter, the trustworthiness of
his word, and the great treasure house of his soul, it did not suffice for him
to only transmit interpretation in word, but also he wanted to depict for us
in writings his thought and opinion concerning all the verses and chapters
in the scriptures, Old (Testament) as well as New (Testament), depicted
according to Theodore the Exegete. Many homilies and disputations were
also produced by him. 525

[392] All of us pray that God will add to his life, like the blessed Hezekiah,
because like a great royal treasure, his soul is rich with all the sciences of the
scriptures, and like a king’s table which is adorned with all sorts of foods, 526
thus he is continually a spiritual table set up before us, filled with dainties
of the scriptures and embroidered with various sorts of teaching of the holy
lection and salted with the elegant speech of the philosophers. Everyone
who is nourished by this man is not in need of other food, but, as every
scribe who is made a student to the kingdom of heaven, it is said about him
that he brings out from his treasures new and old things 527 and nourishes the
souls that are hungry, so also sometimes from the Old (Testament), and at
other times from the New (Testament), but sometimes from the writings of
his predecessors, he feeds us with his writings. 528

He is tranquil, compassionate, and long-suffering, and he does not seek
his own honour as all others do. Behold, his writings travel 529 everywhere.
Even where he is distant, through his writings he is close by and teaches.

523 Syr. estadyawn, from Gr. stadion. Agonistic metaphors had long been a cliche in early
Christian literary culture.

524 Syr. pushshaqayhon. This may also be translated more concretely as ‘their commen¬
taries’.

525 Syr. memre wa-drashe. There was a shift to writing in prose through the sixth century
due to the influence of Greek exegetical literature. Therefore, the memre attributed to Henana
may be prose works, in contrast to those of Narsai, for example.

526 A similar metaphor is used in the ‘Life of Abraham of Bet Rabban’ for his reforma¬
tion of the exegesis of the School (see note LA 37). The preceding clause seems to refer to
Isa 38:5.

527 Mt 13:52.

528 The text published by Mingana ends here. It then continues with material unattested
elsewhere. See the ‘Mingana Fragment’ and Appendix I.

529 Syr. radyan. This may also mean ‘instruct’ or ‘chastise’.

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158 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Report of him and his glory are spread in all the distant schools as in the ones
nearby through the mouth of all his students. Because of this man we ask and
seek from God that when [393] it is pleasing to that universal providence and
it causes him to migrate from us to itself, it will choose one for us from his
sons and students, though he be inferior by comparison to him, one who is
trained in his ways and his habits and retains his traditions, 530 and honours
his memory continually as a son would his father.

The Division of the Sessions

This is the cause of the assemblies told in brief. The (school) session was
arranged and set 531 in the two seasons of summer and winter, not in an
ordinary way, 532 but because the human being is double, (composed) of soul
and body. These things are not able to exist 533 one without its companion.
Therefore the fathers arranged things so that, just as we care for this psychic
nourishment, 534 thus they distinguished for us times that are also convenient
for us for the labour of bodily nourishment. For also our Lord when he
taught the Apostles the aim 535 of spiritual prayer, because it (i.e. the soul)
is not able to exist without this bodily (nourishment), he said to them: Give
us today our daily bread. 516 He also showed that this too is by necessity
required. Thus also Paul taught: We did not bring anything 537 into the world
and it is certain that we are not even able to bring anything out of it. Because
of this, food and covering are sufficient for us. 53i Thus also the fathers did,
that is, in the two times [394] that they arranged for us there are the two
labours: before the summer session is the harvest, and then the session of
the Apostles. 539 Before the winter session is the labour of the figs and olives,

530 Syr. mashlmanwateh. This may also refer to his actual writings (‘commentaries’).

531 Syr. rnawtbd. The idiom here seems to reflect a technical usage and it serves as evidence
that the school calendar was understood as part of the holy calendar since ‘holidays’ too are
‘set’; see Ishai, On the Martyrs , 48.8.

532 Syr. law shhima’it. This could also be rendered as ‘not without forethought’. On the
meaning of shhimd , see note 484 above.

533 Lit. ‘stand’.

534 Or ‘of the soul’.

535 Syr. nishd, equivalent to Gr. skopos. See note 14 in the introduction to Barhadbeshabba’s
Ecclesiastical History above.

536 Mt 6:11; lit. ‘give us today the bread of our need’.

537 Scher emends the text, changing lam to la (note 2).

538 1 Tim 6:7.

539 The canons of Narsai suggest that there was originally only one school session
(mawtba) (Statutes of the School ofNisibis 77-78, 110). On this passage, see Becker, Fear of

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THE CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS 159

and then the winter session. They taught us to occupy ourselves diligently in
the two of them. However, we should know which labour was for the sake
of which. For this spiritual one is not for the sake of the bodily, but rather
the bodily for the sake of the spiritual. Thus also one of the wise men says:
All human beings seek to live so that they may eat, but I myself eat so that
I may live. 540

Exhortation 541

Therefore the divine assembly is a likeness of the four faces in that it gazes
upon and sees all regions, assuredly as the chariot of Ezekiel, 542 likewise
also it is seen by all (regions). Because of this, it is fitting for those who lead
their lives 543 within it to walk 544 in a manner becoming to this business and to
listen to the word of our Lord who said: Seek first of all after the kingdom of
God and his justice, and all these things will be given in addition unto you. 545
Our own commerce is spiritual and our labour is in heaven. From there we
await the one who gives us life, our Lord [395] Jesus the Messiah ; according
to the word of the blessed Paul, he will change the body of our lowly state
and make it a likeness of his glory. 546

For not as those who beat the air do we run, nor again do we labour
for something uncertain, 541 but rather for the great hope of spiritual knowl¬
edge. Because of this, before everything let us acquire love for the business
(of the school) as well as for each other. Let us reward the masters with
due honour, so that they too will conduct themselves 548 with us in joy and
good will, according to our weakness. Lor if those who occupy themselves
with worldly games before earthly kings, although they are honoured with

God, 105-06. On the Rabbinic metivta, see, e.g., David M. Goodblatt, Rabbinic Instruction in
Sasanian Babylonia (Leiden: Brill, 1975), 76-92.

540 This saying was attributed to Socrates in a number of ancient sources, e.g. Diogenes
Laertius, Lives of the Philosophers, ed. H. S. Long (Oxford: Clarendon, 1964), 2.34

541 It is standard practice in the ‘cause’ genre to end by exhorting the audience to virtuous
conduct. In those instances of the genre where the portions of the text are formally divided into
separate chapters this exhortation entails a distinct chapter.

542 Ezek 1:1-28.

543 Syr. metdabbrin, etpa. ‘conduct oneself, act, or live’.

544 ‘To walk’ is a common metaphor taken from the Hebrew Bible for leading one’s life.

545 Lk 12:31. The words ‘and his justice’ are a biblical variant.

546 Phil 3:20.

547 1 Cor 9:26.

548 Syr. netdabbrun. See note 556 below on the noun cognate with this verb.

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160 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

a worldly honour, hold themselves away from anything that hinders the
labour of their craft, as the blessed Paul said: How much more is it right
for us to hold our mind away from anything that is against our craft Z 549 For
not only before outsiders does the Apostle command us to walk with right
behaviour 550 and to be in order, (saying): buy your opportunity 551 and let
your word be all the time seasoned with grace as with salt. 552 For, if those
who are chosen by earthly kings for a certain deed, even if they are raging
and licentious, from then onward desist from these former (ways) [396] and
become peaceful and pleasant, how much more is it right for us to do this!
If it is the case that whenever someone is invited to enter the royal house,
before he takes food, on that day he guards himself carefully, lest they see
in him disorder and reject him and expel him from there, how much more
is it right for us - we who have been invited to the heavenly wedding feast
- to adorn ourselves with deeds suitable for that wedding feast, so that our
Lord may not say to us: My friend, how have you entered here when you
do not have wedding garments? If only this alone were the shame! But he
says: Bind his hands and feet and remove him to the outer darkness. If only
it were temporary! But he says: There there will be crying and gnashing of
teeth. 555

Conclusion

So then lest we be struck by this scourge, 554 let us labour diligently, according
to the aim 555 of our learning, while we adjust our way of life 556 to our didactic

549 The source of this quotation is unclear.

550 The biblical text has hekmta (‘wisdom’) instead of eskema.

551 Syr. qe’rsa, from Gr. kairos.

552 Col 4:5-6. Scher suggests there is an omission here (note 3). The switch from indirect
to direct speech is awkward.

553 Mt 22:12-13; Mt 22:1 Iff is incorporated in a similar manner into the final exhortation
at Cyrus of Edessa, Six Explanations, 135.1-136.7 (trans. 119.22-120.28) and 158.21-159.13
(140.2-22). Tamcke, Der Katholikos-Patriarch SabrTso /. (596-604) und das Monchtum,
31-32 for Henana’s reading of this text; cf. Ishodad of Merv, Commentary on the Gospels,
2.145.12-15 (1.86).

554 Syr. esqta, from Gr. skutos.

555 Syr. nisha, equivalent to Gr. skopos. See note 14 in the introduction to Barhadbeshabba’s
Ecclesiastical History above.

556 The expression ‘way of life’ here and in the following line is the Syriac dubbare. The
chapter title of several of the concluding exhortations of the ‘cause’ genre is ‘an exhortation
to virtuous conduct’ ( martyanuta d- ‘al dubbare shappire) (e.g. Cyrus of Edessa, Six Expla¬
nations, 3.28 [trans. 3.24]). The following expression, ‘our didactic reading’, is literally ‘the
reading of our learning’ (qeryaneh d-yullphdnon)

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THE MINGANA FRAGMENT:
TRANSLATION AND NOTES

See the discussion of this brief passage and its authenticity in Appendix I.

VI. And in these two years (during) which the assembly of Nisibis ceased on
account of Khusrau the King, 1 many students went to Seleucia-Ctesiphon 2
where Mar Aba had been recently teaching, whom the king was fond of, .. , 3
so that he might prepare a path 4 for war with the Romans. 5 When the students
assembled again, some of those who had gone to Seleucia-Ctesiphon
returned, some did not, because they were also reading the writings of the
Exegete 6 there, as (in) our assembly of Nisibis. Those ones did not return
who were there to help them with the interpretation and meditation, such
as Ishai and Ramisho 1 , 7 and Wardashir, 8 Karka d-Ledan, 9 Kashkar, 10 and
Shoshan 11 were then illuminated, and these two assemblies began to proceed
in the path of learning and secure ways, while guiding the spiritual ship of
the church between storms without fear.

VII. But when the fathers sought to select another head in the place of Joseph, 12

1 Khusrau I (531-579). See noteCS 509.

2 Lit. ‘the cities’. Cf. Arab, al-mada’in.

3 Mar Aba was Catholicos c. 540-552. There is a lacuna in the text, but the syntax is clear
otherwise.

4 Lit. ‘tread his path’.

5 The text is describing events which occurred during the second Sasanian-Roman war of
the sixth century (640-662). Winter and Dignas, Rom und das Perserreich, 57-65, 124-29.

6 I.e., Theodore of Mopsuestia.

7 These were two important figures at the School of Seleucia in the sixth century. The former
composed the extant ‘cause’ text, On the Martyrs , 15-52. Both appear at Chronicle of Siirt,
2.1.158. On the two of them, see also Voobus, History , 175-76 and Baumstark, Geschichte,
123.

8 See notes SL 54 and SL 66.

9 See note SL 71.

10 See note LN 132.

11 Susa, a city in Khuzistan.

12 The controversial Catholicos (551-566/7) who was deposed. See Bibliotheca Orientalis
III. 1.432-35; Barhebraeus, Chronicon Ecclesiasticum II, ed. J. B. Abbeloos and T. J. Lamy

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162 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Khusrau the King, after he had returned from the Roman Empire, 13 was not
pleased with this, because he had previously been his doctor. However, when
he saw that they were seeking this in common, 14 he was somewhat frightened
and asked, though with great severity, the fathers to choose another in his
place. Afterwards the king changed his mind and returned to his previous
(opinion) because of the cunning wiles of Joseph. He showed by his manner
of speech that if they should expel him, he would again obstruct the assembly
of Nisibis. He did this because Joseph hated our divine assembly. He declared
to the king that the readers and elementary instructors were seeking to rebel
against him. Or, perhaps (the king changed his mind) because God, praise be
to his grace, took pleasure in this, because the teaching of Mar Henana was
not much loved within the assembly, and this (was the case) also among his
students 15 while he was still teaching, and this (was so) due to the thicket of
commotion that Satan had planted also in this assembly of ours, as is his habit.
His exegetical teachings 16 ceased to go on their path.

VIII. Then Paul, 17 bishop of the city, went to the gate of the King with
a number of presbyters and deacons. 18 The gate of mercies was opened
for him and his entreaty was received before the King of Kings. He made
manifest the cunning wiles of Joseph against the King of Kings and against
the Church of God. The king then gave permission that the assembly be
opened and that another head be appointed. 19 They selected Ishai the teacher,
and Paul and the rest were not happy with him until they selected Hazqi’el,
a friend of the king and a student of Mar Aba. 20 He had come with the king
to Nisibis during this upheaval of the kingdom, which occurred in our days
against the Romans. 21 May the Lord give to all of them power and strength
to lead their flock with tranquility and relief, and may they delight the lambs
that are deposited with them with the teaching of life.

(Louvain-Paris, 1874), 95-97; Chronicle of Siirt, 2.1.176-81; Wright, History, 121; Baumstark,
Geschichte, 124; Labourt, Le Christianisme dans VEmpire Perse , 192-97.

13 Syr. bet rhomdye.

14 Syr. knisha’it, or ‘as an assembly’ (cf. Syr. knushya).

15 Syr. b-talmiduteh.

16 Syr. durrdshe da-mphashshqanuta.

17 Paul, bishop of Nisibis, student of Mar Aba, played an important role in the deposition
of the catholicos Joseph (Fiey, Nisibe, 51-55).

18 On the ‘gate’ of the king, see note CS 510.

19 On the School of Seleucia, see Becker, Fear of God, 157-59.

20 See also Chronicle of Siirt 2.1.192.

21 This war ended in 562.

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PORTION OF THE MEMRA ON THE HOLY FATHERS:
TRANSLATION AND NOTES

Addai Scher appended to his edition of the Cause part of a memra, that is,
a metrical homily, which he found in the library of the Chaldean episcopate
of Diyarbakir in a seventeenth-century manuscript containing homilies of
Narsai. 1 The memra was composed by Rabban Surin, 2 a head of the School
of Nisibis in the seventh century, but a marginal note explains that some of
the lines in the text were written by his student, Jacob the Great. Unfortu¬
nately Scher only reproduced those lines of the text which he deemed of
historical importance. The manuscript he used has probably been destroyed,
but at least one copy of the text is extant in Berlin. 3

Memra on the Holy Fathers, Mar Narsai, Mar Abraham, Mar John,
which was produced by Rabban Surin, their student and spiritual son

In this path our blessed teachers went, Master Narsai, Mar Abraham, and
Mar John ... From Edessa 4 they began the labours of teaching and they
completed the course of their way of life in the city of Nisibis. 5 ... After
the time that Edessa 6 went a-whoring and was an adulteress with the calf,

1 Cause 399^02; see Addai Scher, ‘Notice sur les Manuscrits Syriaques et Arabes conserves
a l’archeveche Chaldeen de Diarbekir’, JA 10 (1907): 361-62, Ms 70. The manuscript is dated
1328 of the Greeks, i.e. 1639 CE, and produced in the Monastery of Michael of Tar‘el in
Adiabene.

2 Baumstark, Geschichte, 196—97.

3 Baumstark (ibid.) suggests that there is another copy of this text in a liturgical collection
of Narsai’s works. However, his citation for this is Eduard Sachau, Verzeichniss der syrischen
Handschriften der Koniglichen Bibliothek zu Berlin (Berlin: A. Asher, 1899), 57 (Sachau
174-76) (pp. 190-97), #10, which is identical with Narsai’s homily on Diodore, Theodore,
and Nestorius: ‘Homelie de Narses sur les Trois Docteurs Nestoriens’, ed. and trans. F. Martin,
JA 9e ser. 14 (1899): 446-92; 15 (1900): 469-525. Perhaps the Surin text has been interpolated
into the homily, but Baumstark does not state this and someone would have to check the actual
manuscript in Berlin. Completed in 1881, it may ultimately be related to Diyarbakir 70.

4 The Greek name of the city is transliterated here in the Syriac, ’ds’ (Gr. Edessa).

5 Syr. Soba. This is the later Syriac name for Nisibis.

6 Syr. Urhay.

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164 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

which the demon of Egypt 7 moulded and sent, and which was set up there,
the assembly with its teachers migrated and came to Nisibis, and it became
great and large and cast down sinews, also roots. Wondrous Narsai and Mar
Barsauma planted, also they consolidated. Little by little it became great
and it was abundant with leaves and fruit. ... Thirty years and a little more
the glorious one lived and he did not slacken nor become silent from the
battle with the errant ones. ... Mar Michael, the student of truth, a skilled
scribe, 8 - speech is too small to repeat the tale of his story. ... Mar Elisha
who is named bar Qozbaye, 9 he became a student to the teaching of the
skilled scribes. The athlete of truth (girded) 10 himself against sin, and he
demonstrated the truth of his faith and rebuked ungodliness. Mar Isho'yahb,
who was from Arzon, succeeded him. He worked, was successful, and was
selected Catholicos. Mar Abraham bar Qardahe 11 inherited his seat and he
cast the mould of his words according to those before him. There were after¬
wards from generation to generation other teachers until at one time Rabban
Surin arose. In this path the just lover of the just went, and he began and
finished by the power of the aid which is from grace. Fifty years he worked
in this spiritual field and he did not yield to the difficult times that battled
against him. Inasmuch as he was loved a love of his lord was upon him
(greater) than anything. In the likeness of the just he endured the scorn of the
foolish, and he did not weary from the fight against the demons. Demons and
men battled with the just and modest one, and the demons were shamed and
the just one was victorious by the power of the spirit. He became a student to
the mastership 12 of the words of truth. He composed a homily 13 of the glory
of the righteous ones with the speech of his mouth. This homily was written
by him about the holy ones, the followers of Mar Narsai, Mar Abraham, and
Mar John. He imitated them in their faith and their way of life, and like a son
and an heir he inherited the seat of their teaching. He produced exegeses and
composed homilies as well as commentaries, 14 and he deposited a treasure
of teaching for his heirs.

7 I.e. Cyril of Alexandria (d. 444). Cyril is commonly referred to as simply ‘the Egyptian’.

8 A common expression, e.g. Jacob of Sarug, Homelies contre Juifs, 1.1.

9 The text is br qrbn ’ (bar qurbane), but I follow Scher’s suggested emendation (the altera¬
tion from zciyin to resh and yod to nun are both understandable mistakes to make in the Syriac
script).

10 The text is unreadable here. Scher suggests hayyes.

11 Lit. ‘son of the smiths (of small articles)’. This seems to be Abraham of Bet Rabban.

12 Syr. rabbanuta.

13 Syr. memra.

14 Syr. turgame.

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APPENDIX I

ON THE MANUSCRIPT TRADITION OF THE
CAUSE OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

The manuscript tradition of the Cause is confused due to both the impreci¬
sion of previous scholars and the tumultuous modern political history of the
region from which the manuscripts derive. The Patrologia Orientalis edition
of the Cause was produced in 1907 by Mar Addai Scher (1867-1915),
Archbishop of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Siirt, a city south-west of
Lake Van in south-eastern Turkey. Aside from his pastoral duties, Scher was
an active scholar who published numerous works on Syriac literature and
history as well as part of the edition and French translation of the Arabic
Chronicle of Siirt, or the Nestorian History (Histoire Nestorienne) as it is
also called. Scher was murdered in 1915 amidst the catastrophic upheaval
that took place in what is now south-eastern Turkey during and after World
War I. 1

In his edition of the text of the Cause Scher used three manuscripts:

C Ms 109 Episcopal Library of Siirt; dated 1609.

T Ms 82 Episcopal Library of Siirt; many blanks for those words and
phrases not understood; 16th century. 2
M Ms from the Church of Mar Gurya in the diocese of Siirt; incomplete
at the beginning and the end; more recent; closer to C in content.

Scher also relied upon a fourth text, a selection of the Cause provided
by Alphonse Mingana in the introduction to his edition of the works of
Narsai. 3 Scher refers to this text as A. C serves as the base text, while

1 For Scher’s life and bibliography, see J.M. Fiey, ‘L’apport de Mgr Addai Scher (+1915) a
l’hagiographie orientale’, AB 83 (1965): 121—42 and Rudolf Macuch, Geschichte der spat- und
neusyrischen Literatur (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1976), 402-05. For an example of how the
ancient martyrological genre is still alive and kicking, see A. S. Assad, ‘Addai Shir 1867-1915’,
The Harp VIII/IX (1995-96): 209-20. For the context of his death, see David Gaunt, Massa¬
cres, Resistance, Protectors: Muslim-Christian Relations in Eastern Anatolia During World
War I (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias, 2006), 250-56.

2 For both C and T, see Addai Scher, Catalogue des manuscrits Syriaques et Arabes
conserves dans la bibliotheque episcopale de Seert (Kurdistan) (Mosul, 1905).

3 Narsai, Homiliae et Carmina, 32-39 (‘Integra Narratio’).

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166 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Scher’s translation often relies on readings from T presented in the critical
apparatus. Scher’s text is based solely on T for the introductory portion (pp.
327.1-333.7), since this part of the Cause is not extant in C. M is rarely cited
and only towards the end of the text. Scher’s citation practice and apparatus
are occasionally inconsistent.

Along with C, T, M, and A, Scher mentions a fifth manuscript, which
comes from the Chaldean monastery of Notre-Dame des Sentences (Our
Lady of the Seeds), not far from the Monastery of Rabban Hormizd (2 km
from Alqosh and 40 km from Mosul in northern Iraq). He does not include
this manuscript in his list of abbreviations and thus does not seem to have
used it. We know he saw the manuscript in 1902 when he visited the monas¬
tery, after which he produced the catalogue for its library. The manuscript
is incomplete at the end and dated to approximately the 15th century,
according to Scher, who labelled it Ms 52 Notre-Dame des Sentences in
his 1906 catalogue. 4 It was later labelled Alqosh 65 in Voste’s catalogue of
1929. 5 The difference in labels comes from the fact that the books of the
Chaldean monastery of Rabban Hormizd near Alqosh were moved to the
library of Notre-Dame des Sentences in 1869. 6

C and T were probably destroyed in the same events that led to Scher’s
death. 7 The whereabouts of M are unknown but it may also be lost forever.
The preface to a Turkish translation of the Chronicle of Siirt contains an
account of the intentional burning of the library at Siirt in 1915. 8 The Notre-
Dame des Sentences collection was moved to Baghdad at a certain point and
its exact present condition is unclear (=Chaldean Monastery Baghdad 181). 9
As of July 2003 - that is, after the mass looting of cultural and civic institu¬
tions permitted by the American forces occupying Iraq - the collections in
Baghdad were intact.

4 Addai Scher, ‘Notice sur les Manuscrits Syriaques conserves dans la bibliotheque du
Couvent de Chaldeens de Notre Dame-des-Semences’, JA 10 ser 7 (1906): 499.

5 Jacques Marie Voste, ‘Catalogue de la Bibliotheque Syro-Chaldeenne du Couvent de
Notre-Dame des Semences’, Angelicum (Rome) 6 (1929): 27. Voobus refers to it by this
name.

6 Alain Desreumaux, Repertoire des bibliotheques et des catalogues de manuscrits syria¬
ques (Paris: CNRS, 1991), 84-85.

7 Ibid. 230-31.

8 Adday $er, Siirt Vakayinamesi: Dogu Siiryani Nasturi Kilisesi Tarihi (trans. Celal Kaba-
dayi; Istanbul: Yaba, 2002), 8-9.

9 P. Haddad and J. Isaac, Syriac and Arabic Manuscripts in the Library of the Chaldean
Monastery Baghdad, Part I, Syriac Manuscripts (Baghdad: Iraqi Academy, 1988) [Contents
in Arabic], 89.

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APPENDIX I: MANUSCRIPT TRADITION OF THE CAUSE 167

With regard to the stated authorship of the Cause , the authorial attribu¬
tions in the manuscripts themselves are difficult to confirm. Scher’s belief
that the two Barhadbeshabbas were the same person may be reflected in his
edition of the Cause. 10 The author’s name provided in the title of the work
in the PO edition is ‘Mar Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya, Bishop of Halwan’. This
appears in the two copies from Scher’s own hand (Ms 394 Bibliotheque
Nationale de France and Ms Vat. Syr. 507) and probably also in Sharfeh
Patr. 80, which was probably made from the Vatican copy. However, the
catalogue entry for Notre-Dame 52/Alqosh 65 has only ‘Barhadbeshabba
‘Arbaya’, and Mingana 547, probably a copy of this manuscript, has ‘Mar
Barhadbeshabba ‘Arbaya’. The manuscripts are all late and since most of
them are now missing, it is unclear whether a solution to the question of the
author’s name will be found through the authorial attributions in individual
manuscripts. There is the slim chance that new manuscripts of the Cause
will one day come to light. The text was composed in the late sixth century.
It is possible that it was copied at some point in the centuries between its
composition and the present manuscript attestation, and that all copies have
not yet been found. However, this is doubtful.

There are also other modern copies of the Cause. According to Voobus,
Alqosh 155 (= Chald. Mon. 486) is a copy of Siirt 82. 11 (This manuscript
is presumably with Ms 52 Notre-Dame des Semences in Baghdad, if it still
exists, but it is not clear if it actually contains or contained a copy of the
Cause.) As mentioned above, two modern copies were produced by Scher
himself. Syriac Ms 394 Bibliotheque Nationale de France is among Francois
Nau’s papers in Paris and seems to have been sent to Nau by Scher. 12 There
is also now a copy in the Vatican library (Ms Vat. Syr. 507). 13 Voste states
that this was sent by Scher to Father J. Tfinkdji, vicar of the Chaldean Patri¬
arch of Beirut, and that in September 1926 it was deposited in the Vatican
library by Voste himself as a martyr’s relic. 14 Both of these manuscripts are

10 For an early formulation of this opinion, see Scher, ‘Etude supplemental sur les
ecrivains syriens orientaux’, 15.

11 Voobus, History, 111 n. 171.

12 Frangoise Briquel-Chatonnet, Manuscrits syriaques: de la Bibliotheque nationale de
France (nos 356-435 entres depuis 1911), de la Bibliotheque Mejanes d’Aix-en-Provence, de
la Bibliotheque municipale de Lyon et de la Bibliotheque nationale et universitaire de Stras¬
bourg (Paris: Bibliotheque national de France, 1997), 112-13.

13 Arnold Van Lantschoot, Inventaire des manuscrits syriaques desfonds Vatican (490-631):
Barberini oriental et Neofiti (Studi e testi 243; Vatican, 1965), 39.

14 Voste, ‘Catalogue’, 27 n. 1; see also Desreumaux, Repertoire, 112-13. (See notes 5 and
6 above).

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168 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

annotated, the former most likely being the source for the PO edition itself.
Another manuscript, Sharfeh Patr. 80, which is mentioned by Voobus, was
probably made from the copy that would eventually be sent to the Vatican. 15
Further inquiry could be made concerning the manuscripts of the Cause,
but access to those in Baghdad is needed first. Scher’s notes in the Paris
manuscript may also prove helpful.

There is one final manuscript, Ms Ming. Syr. 547, which is a modern
copy and points to a possible problem with Mingana’s scholarly precision,
or perhaps even his truthfulness. 16 In his edition of the metrical homilies
of Narsai Mingana does not specify from which manuscript he draws his
excerpts of the Cause (A, according to Scher). In the catalogue entry for
Mingana 547 he states that it is this manuscript which he used. However,
there are two problems with this. First, Mingana’s catalogue says that the
Cause of Barhadbeshabba is in folio pages 69b-83a. However, neither
Mingana 547 itself nor the published microfiche of it contain the last two
pages (82b-83a). They simply stop mid-sentence at the end of 82a (PO
Edition 377.5) and thus within the Cause well before any of the material
covered in the extract printed in Mingana’s edition of Narsai’s works, which
begins at Cause 381.5 and goes through 392.9 (not including the material
unattested elsewhere). Mingana mentions in the catalogue entry that a page
is missing from the manuscript and there is evidence that a single page has
been torn out of the actual manuscript. 17 Thus, according to Mingana’s state¬
ment in the catalogue, all of the material in the Narsai edition would have to
fit on two manuscript pages. This is impossible.

Furthermore, the contents and order of Mingana 547 are the same as the
manuscript mentioned by Scher in his introduction to the Cause, but which
he did not seem to have used in his edition, that is, Ms 52 Notre-Dame des
Sentences (later Alqosh 65 and then Baghdad Chald. Mon. 181) (perhaps
15th century), mentioned above. Mingana 547 is dated to c. 1880 and thus
must be a copy of Notre-Dame des Sentences 52/Alqosh 65. However, this
Vorlage of Mingana 547 lacks approximately two pages of material which
Mingana published and which cannot be found in any other manuscript (i.e.

15 Behnam Sony, Fihris al-makhtutat al-batriyarklya fl Dair al-Sharfa - Lubnan (‘Le
catalogue des manuscrits du Patriacat au Couvent de Charfet - Liban’) (Beirut, 1993), Ms 797
(p. 307), ‘sabab ta’sTs al-madaris’ on fol. 15-23.

16 Alphonse Mingana, Catalogue of the Mingana Collection of Manuscripts (Cambridge,
1948-1963), col. 1015-16.

17 1 thank Philippa Bassett, archivist at the University of Birmingham, for examining the
manuscript for me.

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APPENDIX I: MANUSCRIPT TRADITION OF THE CAUSE 169

the 'Mingana Fragment’). 18 It is unlikely that this material fell out of both
Mingana 547 and its Vorlage. In any case, if this material was actually part
of the manuscript then it would have to be an interpolation.

Scher does not mention the interpolated material being in Notre-Dame
des Sentences 52/Alqosh 65, the manuscript upon which Mingana 547 is
based. He certainly handled the manuscript and of course later edited the
text of the Cause. Furthermore, although he did not use Notre-Dame des
Sentences 52/Alqosh 65 in his edition, he did use the printed text of Mingana
from the Narsai edition, apparently because he thought it had come from
another manuscript tradition. In the introduction to his edition to the Cause,
he does not seem to be been aware that Mingana 547 is simply a copy of a
manuscript to which he already had access.

With regard to the ‘Mingana Fragment’, Scher recognizes the oddity of
the passage, which is clearly out of place in the Cause. He opines that it is
not part of the original composition, but that it has been added by a later
copyist as a supplement to the original text, inserted into ‘le manuscrit de M.
Mingana’. 19 J. B. Chabot translates this passage into French, but questions
it. 20 J.-M. Fiey, who was the first to raise a firm challenge to the very authen¬
ticity of Mingana’s Chronicle ofArbela, refers to this fragment as ‘un texte
d’origine douteuse’. 21 But Voobus, who suggests that the Cause has been
‘supplemented’, accepts this material as historically authentic and employs
it as the main source for a temporary closure of the School of Nisibis. 22

These problems suggest that we should be suspicious of the text
Mingana published, especially since the content of the ‘interpolation’ is
strange in itself. The material added is not from after the time of Henana or
the author (c. 590s), but refers to mid-sixth-century events, and yet seems to
confuse things by setting Henana in this mid-sixth-century context. Perhaps
Mingana conflated two manuscripts by accident, or even intentionally. Or,
even worse, there remains the possibility that this interpolation is in fact a
forgery.

As anyone who works within Syriac Studies knows, Alphonse Mingana
(1878-1937) was a scholar whose method was occasionally questionable,

18 Narsai, Homiliae et Camiina, 38-39 (sections VII-VIII).

19 Cause 324.

20 J. B. Chabot, ‘Narsai le Docteur et les origins de l’ecole de Nisibe’, JA lOe serie, vol. 6
(July-August 1905): 170-73. Cf. Samir, Alphonse Mingana , 9.

21 J.-M. Fiey, ‘Topographie Chretienne de Mahoze’, OS 12 (1967): 407 (repr. idem,
Communautes syriaques en Iran et Irak des origins a 1552, Chap. 9).

22 Voobus, History, 155-60, or see ibid. 176 for his further use of the text.

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170 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

possibly even disingenuous and deceptive. The famous example of this is his
‘discovery’ of the so-called Chronicle of Arbela, the authenticity of which has
been impugned by scholars of no mean reputation. 23 Furthermore, problems
with Mingana’s work continue to be discussed. For example, in his study of
the/k'f.v of Mar QarddghJoel Walker supports the need for scholarly suspicion
in using Mingana’s editions, 24 while Chip Coakley has found instances of
Mingana’s theft of manuscripts from Rendel Harris’s collection. 25

Mingana’seditionofNarsai’smetricalhomiliesremainstheonly published
version of much of Narsai’s work. It lacks critical scholarly tools and it is
clear that Mingana catholicized the text at certain points. 26 If the interpola¬
tion to the Cause was an invention or, at least, a disingenuous insertion, we
should consider whether Mingana could have had certain goals in publishing
such material. Why would he publish this questionable fragment?

Mingana understood the publication of this material to be a challenge
to Labourt’s rendering of the history of the School of Nisibis as presented
in his synthetic history of Christianity in the Sasanian Empire: ‘From this
narrative of Barhadbeshabba it is clear what sort of corrections should be
brought to bear upon the work of J. Labourt: Le Christianisme dans /’empire
Perse, sous la dynastie Sassanide (1904)’. 27 It is not clear what points in
Labourt’s reconstruction would be challenged by this new material. 28

23 The text of the Chronicle can be found at: A. Mingana, ed. and trans., Sources Syriaques
I (Leipzig: Harrassowitz, 1907) 1-168 and P. Kawerau, ed. and trans., Die Chronik von Arbela
(CSCO 467-68; Louvain: Peeters, 1985). See criticisms in Julius Assfalg, ‘Zur Textiiberlie-
ferung der Chronik von Arbela. Beobachtungen zu Ms. or. fol. 3126’, OC 50 (1966): 19-36
and J.-M. Fiey, ‘Auteur et date de la Chronique d’Arbeles’, OS 12 (1967): 265-302. Sebastian
Brock supports the authenticity of at least some of the work, ‘Syriac Historical Writing’, 23-25.
There is discussion in Samir, Alphonse Mingana, 12-14. Edward G. Mathews, Jr’s review of
Ilaria Ramelli’s 2002 translation and commentary of the Chronicle provides a good introduc¬
tion to the problem and the scholars who have weighed in on this issue, II Chronicon di Arbela:
Presentazione, traduzione e note essenziali (Madrid: Universidad Complutense Madrid, 2002)
at http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/bmcr/2003/2003-l 1-01.html.

24 Walker, The Legend of Mar Qardagh, 287-90.

25 J. F. Coakley, ‘A Catalogue of the Manuscripts in the John Rylands Library’, Bulletin of
the John Rylands Library 75 (1993): 109-13.

26 ‘It was not a critical edition. It was intended to be a reading book for Chaldean priests,
not a book for scholars. For that reason, the homilies were slightly expurgated to suppress some
Nestorian affirmations’ (Samir, Alphonse Mingana, 8).

27 ‘Ex hac narratione Barhadhbchabbae liquet quales correctiones afferendae sint operi D.
J. Labourt: Le Christianisme dans 1’empire Perse, sous la dynastie Sassanide (1904)’ (Narsai,
Homiliae et Carmina, 40, misquoted in Samir, Alphonse Mingana, 11).

28 The bulk of Labourt’s discussion appeal's at Christianisme dans l ’empire Perse, 288-301,
but the narrative portion is primarily pp. 288-93.

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APPENDIX I: MANUSCRIPT TRADITION OF THE CAUSE 171

However, Labourt does question at one point the historicity of Mar Aba’s
founding of the School of Seleucia, which is alluded to at the beginning of
the ‘Mingana Fragment’. 29 Mingana’s criticisms of J. B. Chabot’s work on
the School and its sources would suggest that he was perhaps including this
material in part as a way to attack Chabot. However, I have not found any
precise correspondence between his criticisms of Chabot and the interpo¬
lated material. 30

29 Ibid. 169-70 n. 3. However, on 291 he seems to accept this tradition.

30 Mingana, Reponse a M. Vabbe J.-B. Chabot, a propos de la chronique de Barhadbs-
habba.

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APPENDIX II

THE TREE OF PORPHYRY IN THE CAUSE OF THE
FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS

Despite a silence in the sources concerning formal philosophical study at the
School of Nisibis, it is clear from the works produced there that members
of the School had some acquaintance with the early echelons of the Greek
philosophical curriculum of Late Antiquity, specifically Aristotle’s logical
works and their commentary tradition. The plethora of philosophical material
we find in the Cause of the Foundation of the Schools provides an excellent
example of this. Much of the dependence on Greek philosophical sources
is highlighted in the notes of the translation above and I have discussed
this material in detail elsewhere. 1 However, here I would like to look at
one instance of the text’s use of Aristotelian logic and the later Neoplatonic
commentary tradition. The passage from the Cause under consideration
relies on a Christianized version of the so-called Tree of Porphyry from
Porphyry’s third-century Isagoge.

The Isagoge of Porphyry of Tyre was a key text in the late antique and
Medieval curriculum of learning, among Greek- and Latin-speaking Chris¬
tians and eventually among Jews, Christians, and Muslims working within
Islamic sciences and philosophy. It is in fact the most influential work in
logic and one of the most influential books in philosophy in general. Written
as an introduction to Aristotle’s Categories, it defines and describes the
relationship between the five different ways in which a subject can relate to
a predicate, or the ‘predicables’, as they are called. 2 According to Porphyry,
the five predicables are Genus, Species, Difference, Property, and Accident. 3

1 Becker, Fear of God, 126-54.

2 For an edition with a long, useful introduction to the text, a French translation, and the
Latin version of Boethius, see Porphyry, Isagoge , trans. A. de Libera and A.-P. Segonds, intro,
and notes A. de Libera (Paris: Vrin, 1998). Also now there is the extensive commentary on the
Isagoge by Jonathan Barnes, Porphyry, Introduction (Oxford: Clarendon, 2003). For a critical
text, see the CAG edition. There is no one definitive study on the Isagoge 's wide influence in
Greek, Latin, Syriac, Arabic, etc.

3 Porphyry actually confuses Aristotle’s system by treating genus and species as different
predicables.

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APPENDIX II: THE TREE OF PORPHYRY IN THE CAUSE 173

The Isagoge was the first text in the Neoplatonic school curriculum and
several commentaries on it from the later Neoplatonists are extant.

The most famous portion of the Isagoge is the so-called Tree of Porphyry.
The Tree is part of a passage in which Porphyry attempts to demonstrate by
example the relationship between genus and species. The original Tree of
Porphyry is as follows:

Substance then is also a genus; under it is body; and again under body animate body,
and under this is animal; thus again also under it is rational animal, after which is
set man; under man are Socrates, Plato and the rest of men. Of all these substance
is the genus of genera, 4 and it is a genus only, while man is the species of species, 5
and it is a species only. Body is a species of substance and a genus of animate body.
But then also animate body is a species of substance and a genus of animal, etc. 6

This passage may be schematized in the following manner:

Substance —> Body —* Animate (or Ensouled) —* Animal (or Living) —► Rational
Animal —► Man

In the above line each entity is a genus of what is on its right and a species
of what is on its left. Thus, substance is not a species nor is man a genus.
There is no broader genus to which substance may belong, while the species
man is made up of particular men, such as Socrates and Plato.

The first translation of the Isagoge into Syriac was completed around
the turn of the sixth century and was part of a steady stream of Greek
philosophical works to be translated and taken up within Syriac-speaking
intellectual centres, first by West Syrians, and later East Syrians, in Sasanian
Mesopotamia and beyond. 7 The first translation of the Isagoge into Syriac
is attributed to the famous West-Syrian translator, Sergius of Resh‘ayna (d.
c. 536 CE). 8 The close connections between early Edessene Christianity, as

4 Translation of Greek: td genikotaton, ‘the most generic’.

5 Translation of Greek: td eidikotaton, ‘the most specific’.

6 Porphyry, Isagoge , 4.2Iff ; trans. from Porphyry the Phoenician, Isagoge , trans. E. W.
Warren (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1975), 35-36; Syriac version
9.26-10.8 (Brock, ‘The earliest Syriac translation of Porphyry’s Eisagoge’).

7 Hugonnard-Roche, La logique d’Aristote du grec au syriaque; Sebastian P. Brock, ‘From
Antagonism to Assimilation: Syriac Attitudes to Greek Learning’, in East of Byzantium: Syrian
and Armenia in the formative period , ed. N. G. Garsoian, T. F. Mathews, and R. W. Thomson
(Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks Center for Byzantine Studies, 1984), 19-34 (repr. in
Brock, Syriac Perspectives on Late Antiquity [London: Ashgate, 1984]).

8 Brock, ‘The earliest Syriac translation of Porphyry’s Eisagoge’. This attribution is
questioned in Henri Hugonnard-Roche, ‘Les traductions syriaques de l’lsagoge de Porphyre et la
constitution du corpus syriaque de logique’, Revue d’Histoire des Textes 24 (1994): 293-312.

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174 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

well as Syriac Christianity in general, and Antioch, which have been clearly
traced out by modern scholars (and were acknowledged even in antiquity),
have been used to explain the first influx of philosophical literature into
Edessa and from there further transmission eastward. 9 However, as the sixth
century progressed, the circuits of transmission became more complex and
texts went through various routes. 10 Furthermore, the heavy dependence on
the later Neoplatonic transmission of this material suggests that Antioch was
of less importance than direct connections to Alexandria.

The Tree of Porphyry apparently served as a useful teaching device and
was at times transmitted separately from the Iscigoge as whole. It is an easy
didactic tool, one that could remain in the student’s memory and later be
reworked and used as one chose. Its popularity in Syriac can be seen not
only in the translation of the Isagoge, but also the version of the Tree found
in Paul the Persian’s sixth-century Introduction to Logic (see below) and
in the separate version we find in the seventh-century manuscript, British
Library Add 14658. 11

The division of universal substance (Gr. ousia ): Substance is divided into body
and non-body. Body is divided into ensouled and not ensouled. Ensouled body is
divided into animal, living-plant, and plant. By body then are known wood, dry
stuff, and stones. Animal then is divided into rational and non-rational. Rational
then is divided into human and god. Human is divided into Socrates and Plato.
Non-rational animal is divided into cow, horse, and the rest of the four footed
(animals), and creeping (things), the bird, flying (things) and whatever lives in
the water. 12

A schematization of this passage is as follows:

Substance —* Body —► Animate (or Ensouled) —> Animal (or Living) —* Rational
—> Human —* Socrates

9 See, for example, a number of the articles in H. J. W. Drijvers, East of Antioch: Studies
in Early Syriac Christianity (London: Ashgate, 1984).

10 Becker, Eear of God, 127-30; Walker, The Legend of Mar Qardagh, 180-90.

11 Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum, III: 1154-1160 (Ms
DCCCCLXXXVII).

12 pullag usiya’ d-gawwd (the text is rubricated up to this point): usiya’ metpalga I-gushma
w-ld gushmd, gushma metpleg la-mnaphphshd w-ld mnaphphsha, gushma mnaphphsha metpleg
l-hayyutd wa-l-hayyut nsebtd wa-l-nsebta. b-gushmd den la mnaphphsha metyad'in qayse(w-)
yabbishe w-kephe. hayyutd den [Id] metpleg la-mlild wa-l-ld mlild, mlila den metpleg l-bar
’ndsha w-l-aldhd. bar ’nashd metpleg l-soqratis wa-l-pldton. hayyutd la mliltd metpalga
l-tawrd wa-l-susyd wa-l-sharkd d-arb‘at regie w-rahsha wa-l-tayrd wa-l-prahtd w-l-aylen
da-b-mayyd mdayyrin. The text is in a column of twenty-three lines in the manuscript.

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APPENDIX II: THE TREE OF PORPHYRY IN THE CAUSE 175

This version of the Tree shows clear connections to the later Neoplatonic
versions, such as the tripartite division of the ‘animate’ that we also find
in the commentaries attributed to Elias and David. 13 There is no obvious
evidence of Christian interpolation. 14

The Cause contains an idiosyncratic version of the Tree and provides
its earliest Syriac attestation in East-Syrian literature. The variations of the
Cause’s version of the Tree from the original reveal something of the later
Neoplatonic and Christian tradition on which the Cause depends. In fact,
what might be considered the misuse of the Tree within the Cause demon¬
strates how the early reception of this material was not a simple taking up
of Greek texts and ideas, but rather a negotiated appropriation, which could
lead to a peculiar use of the transmitted material.

The Tree as it appears in the Cause is as follows:

Since everything that exists is either substance 15 or accident, 16 each of these
divisions is divided into many species, these (entities) which are included under
it. Therefore all substance that exists is either corporeal or incorporeal. Body too
is divided into many differences that are under it. That is, then, the ensouled body
and the one without soul, the one endowed with sense and the other deprived of
it. Thus also the ensouled body is arranged into other distinctions: the body that
is living and the one that is not, the one that moves, and the other deprived of
movement; and again that one that is living and moves is divided also into other
distinctions that are under it, that is, the rational and the non-rational, and again
the rational into the spiritual and the psychic, and the non-rational into the living
and the non-living; 17 and again the spiritual is divided also into the limited and the
unlimited, the one eternal 18 and the other temporal, the one the cause of all things,
the other is the effect 19 that is from the cause of all things, which is God. 20

13 It also shares with the works of Elias and David a division of the different animal species.
See note 29 below.

14 This fits with the disputed suggestion that the manuscript in which it is found belonged
to the Syriac-speaking, pagan philosophical community of Harran (Becker, Fear of God, 129).
However, other texts in this manuscript are certainly Christian.

15 Syr. usiya’, from Or. ousia.

16 Syr. gedsha, the Syriac equivalent of Gr. sumbebekos.

17 Non-rational is a species of living. To say that there are living things that are non-rational
is redundant. However, the passage goes a step further and states that non-rational has non-living
under it as well. This is said perhaps to avoid the suggestion that the rational/non-rational
dichotomy applies only to living things and not to God and the angels.

18 Syr. itya, or ‘existent’.

19 Such a phrase may derive from the East-Syrian theological tradition. See Brock, ‘The
Christology of the Church of the East’, 138.

20 Cause 337.13-338.10.

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176 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

The word ‘under’ used in this passage means ‘subject to, subordinate to’.
The idea that there would be existents in a genus above substance seems to
derive from a loose usage of the word ‘exists’. The Syriac itawihy) can mean
both ‘to be’ or ‘to exist’, but also ‘to exist eternally or truly’ in the philo¬
sophical sense of the Greek word einai. Whereas elsewhere in the Cause
(e.g. 334.7-334.15) the philosophical sense is employed, for example, when
the author states that only God can truly ‘exist’, here the more common
sense of the word is being used. To ‘exist’ in this case refers also to things
that come into and go out of being, commonly expressed by the Greek verb
gignesthai. The dichotomy we find in the passage between accident and
substance is basic to Aristotelian philosophy. All of Aristotle’s categories,
except substance, are accidentals. There cannot be further division under
accident in the Tree because there can be no science of accidentals. 21

Some of the further distinctions drawn by the Cause’s Tree derive from
the philosophical tradition. For example, distinctions the Cause makes under
the category of the spiritual, differentiating between limited and unlimited
and cause and effect, can be traced to philosophical sources. The further
distinctions created by introducing the properties of ‘movement’ and ‘sensa¬
tion’ clearly derive from Aristotle and the commentary tradition on his
works. In book I of DeAnima Aristotle summarizes his predecessors’ views
on the nature of the soul as generally falling into two categories, the soul
as principle of movement ( kinesis ) and as principle of sensation (aisthesis).
In book II he begins his own definition. ‘Making then a beginning of our
inquiry we say that ensouled is distinguished from soul-less by living.’ 22
‘Living’ he previously defined as having ‘self-nourishment, increase, and
decay’. 23 ‘Soul’ has various faculties. The most common is the nutritive,
which even plants share. 24 This is the faculty of growth and self-mainte¬
nance. ‘Living’ belongs to all living things but it is specifically the ‘animal’
that has sensation (aisthesis). 25 Movement ( kinesis ) is also one of the facul¬
ties of ‘soul’, though it is not necessarily a faculty of every ensouled entity. 26
Thus, ‘ensouled’ in the Tree of Porphyry is what we would commonly call
‘living’, but does not necessarily entail ‘movement’ or ‘sensation’ (e.g. it is

21 Jonathan Bames, Aristotle (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1982), 57.

22 DeAnima 413a20-22.

23 Ibid. 412al4-15.

24 Ibid. 413b7-8.

25 Ibid. 413b 1-2.

26 Ibid. 414a31-2.

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APPENDIX II: THE TREE OF PORPHYRY IN THE CAUSE 111

applicable to plants). 27 ‘Living’ is used more specifically for those entities
that we would refer to as animals (cf. Gr. zoon).

Of the Neoplatonic commentaries on the Isagoge, that of Ammonius is
the earliest and the briefest. In Ammonius’s summary of the passage which
contains the Tree of Porphyry, he explains the difference between ensouled
and animal (i.e. living).

For the animal is said to be ensouled and partaking of sensation (Gr. aistheseos
metechon ); ensouled is that which is reared, increases, and begets something
similar to itself. Therefore plants, which partake of these faculties, are ensouled,
but they are not animals. 28

He then mentions creatures such as sponges, which seem to be in between
plant and animal in that they have sensation, but are rooted like plants (i.e.
they do not move). For Ammonius, what makes an animal different from
something ensouled is sensation. This definition of ‘animal’ as that which
has sensation and of ‘ensouled’ as what we would refer to as living (i.e.
growth) goes back to Aristotle and employs a different notion of soul than
that of Christian sources, which do not usually attribute a soul to animals.

The commentaries on the Isagoge attributed to Elias and David, two
shadowy figures of the sixth century, rationalize the statement of Ammonius
quoted above by suggesting three divisions beneath ensouled (instead of
‘animal’ and ‘not animal’): plant, animal-plant ( zdophuton , i.e. the sponge),
and animal. All three have souls, but the animal-plant has sensation,
while the animal has both sensation and movement. 29 For Aristotle and
the commentators on the Isagoge, sensation and movement are properties
that distinguish the animal from the ensouled. That the Cause associates
movement with the living (i.e. the animal) makes sense in this context and
fits with the later commentary tradition. However, its attribution of sense to
soul does not.

The Cause's lack of harmony with the Neoplatonic material stems from
a Christian notion of the soul. While Neoplatonists understood there to be
different levels of the soul and even a lower and a higher soul, one associ¬
ated with the nutritive, the other containing the higher functions like those
of the mind (Gr. nous), Christians tended to understand the soul as a unified

27 See the so-called scala naturae, the gradual movement from soulless entity to animal at
Hist. Animal. 588b4-589a3.

28 Ammonius, In Isagogen 79.4-7.

29 Elias, In Isagogen 64.27-35; David, In Isagogen 148.18-34, ed. A. Busse (CAG 18.2,
1904).

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178 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

and singular entity. Although it skews the Tree in the process, the author’s
attribution of sense to soul points to his concern to protect and maintain the
Christian idea of the soul. A similar confusion in the Tree can be found in
that of Paul the Persian, a figure from earlier in the sixth century, whose
Introduction to Logic was composed in Middle Persian and translated into
Syriac in the seventh century. Paul’s text introduces logic by summarizing
the Isagoge and the Organon. Paul presents his own version of the Tree of
Porphyry in the same place that the Tree appears in the Isagoge , that is, in
his discussion of the concept of species.

There is one genus which is called substance and this is divided into corporeal
and incorporeal. Incorporeal is divided into souls, angels, and demons. Corporeal
is divided into the animate (lit. ensouled) and the inanimate, the inanimate is
divided into heaven and earth and into stones, wood and all things such as this.
Animate is divided into living animate and not animate but only (living), such as
trees. Animate life is then divided into domesticated animals, wild animals, fish,
creeping things, and the human being. The human being is divided into individual
persons, each of whom are human beings who differ from one another among
numerable persons. 30

Paul has made several changes to Porphyry’s schema. What is relevant to
our discussion is that he seems to have two conceptions of the soul: one as
the capacity for life, as in the Tree of Porphyry, but another which includes
the higher functions, which animals and humans have, such as movement
and sensation. Furthermore, he also places souls themselves, the entities
which ‘ensoul’ corporeal beings, in a separate subgroup of incorporeals.
It is interesting that Paul, or at least the translator of his text, is willing to
distort the Tree even though it is in a section of his text, as in the Isagoge,
aimed at introducing the reader to the notions of genus and species. Further¬
more, ‘rational’ has been removed from the Tree. This may be because of
the existence of a separate group of incorporeals, such as angels, which are
also rational. Perhaps Paul does not want to make rational a species of body.
In any case, the multiple meanings of ‘soul’ in this text reflect the tension
between a Christian and a philosophical psychology.

The Cause attributes sensation to the soul apparently because it too
maintains a Christian notion of the soul, understanding it to be a more
complex entity with higher faculties than the simple philosophical notion of

30 Paul the Persian, Introduction to Logic , 6.25-7.6 (Syriac) / 7-8 (Latin version). On this
‘Tree of Porphyry’, see Javier Teixidor, Aristote en Syriaque: Paul le Perse, logicien du Vie
siecle (Paris: CNRS, 2003), 82-83.

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APPENDIX II: THE TREE OF PORPHYRY IN THE CAUSE 179

soul, which is often employed to describe the simple nutritive faculty of all
‘living’ beings. The division of rational into spiritual (or ‘pneumatic’) and
psychic seems to be a Christian addition to the Tree deriving ultimately from
1 Cor 2:14-15. 31 This division shows up in the ascetic writings of the early
Syriac monastic writer, John the Solitary, who attributes to human beings
a corporeal, a psychic, and a pneumatic state. 32 His threefold system shows
up in later Syriac texts as well. 33 Like the Tree found in Paul the Persian’s
Introduction , the Tree in the Cause seems to use ‘soul’ and its cognates in
more than one way. Further divisions under ‘rational’ appear in the later
Neoplatonic commentators as well. Ammonius states that the rational is a
genus of the mortal and the mortal a genus of man. 34 The later Elias divides
the rational up into God, angel, and man. 35

Despite the clear dependence on Greek philosophical texts and ideas
at the School of Nisibis as well as at other less well attested East-Syrian
schools, it is important to emphasize that the East-Syrians were not engaged
in philosophy per se. For example, Dimitri Gutas argues that philosophy
died in Late Antiquity and only appeared again in the ‘Abbasid period, as is
exemplified in the work of al-Kindi. 36 His argument is based upon the premise

31 For ‘psychic’ see Gerhard Kittel, ed., Theological Dictionary of the NT (Grand Rapids,
MI: Eerdmans, 1964-76), vol IX; for the importance of this division for so-called Gnostics,
see Elaine Pagels, The Gnostic Paul: Gnostic Exegesis of the Pauline Letters (Philadelphia:
Fortress Press, 1975), 59.

32 S. Dedering, ed., Johannes von Lykopolis, Ein Dialog iiber die Seele und die Affekte des
Menschen (Arbeten utgivna med understod av Vilhelm Ekmans Universitetsfond 43; Uppsala,
1936), 13.12

33 For example, Joseph Hazzaya, Lettre sur les trois etapes de la vie monastique, ed. and
trans. P. Harb and F. Graffin, PO 45:2 (1992).

34 Ammonius, In Isagogen 79.12-14.

35 Elias, In Isagogen 63.27; see also 65.22ff: ‘Some also have a problem with how it is
that the animal is divided into the rational and the irrational and the rational into the mortal
and the immortal. For it is also possible to divide again the mortal into the rational and the
irrational. Since then the thing which is divided tends to be more general than the things into
which it is divided, both the rational will be more general than the mortal and the mortal more
general than the rational, which is odd. To this we say that there is no subdivision of mortal
and immortal but an epi-division or secondary division of the animal, so that we might say of
the animal that there is rational and irrational, and again of the animal that there is mortal and
immortal, as it is possible to be divided into other things ... the rational is divided into God
and man.’ See also 66.2ff.

36 Dimitri Gutas, ‘Geometry and the Rebirth of Philosophy in Arabic with al-Kindi’, in
Words, Texts and Concepts Cruising the Mediterranean Sea: Studies on the Sources, Contents
and Influences of Islamic Civilization and Arabic Philosophy and Science, ed. R. Amzen and
J. Thielmann (Louvain: Peeters, 2004), 195-209.

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180 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

that philosophy in its Western classical sense exists only within a circum¬
scribed space of reason. Philosophy does not consist simply of philosophical
arguments and ideas, but requires a certain foundation in reason. While one
might argue that Gutas’s position raises the bar too much for determining
what counts as philosophy and avoids the internal perspective of the specific
intellectual cultures under examination, his general point is accurate. The
East-Syrian use of Aristotle and the Neoplatonic commentary tradition on
his logical works should not be mistaken for philosophy. As the example of
the Tree of Porphyry and its incorporation into the Cause demonstrate, the
East-Syrian appropriation of philosophical terms and concepts consisted of
a pragmatic selection of what would ultimately be useful only to issues of
theological and devotional concern.

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APPENDIX III

THE LITERARY DEPENDENCE OF THE CAUSE
OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS ON THE
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY

The relationship between the Cause and the Ecclesiastical History is
certainly puzzling. 1 Although the two texts were written within approxi¬
mately twenty years of one another, within the same institution, and perhaps
by the same author, nevertheless there are discrepancies in the informa¬
tion they provide. Ignoring the issue of authorship, the possible ways of
explaining the texts’ relationship are: 1) the Cause and the Ecclesiastical
History come from the same milieu and thus, unsurprisingly, say similar
things; 2) the Cause and the Ecclesiastical History share a similar source; or
3) the Cause depends on the Ecclesiastical History. Of these three options,
the first seems to be the least likely because of specific parallels, however
few, in phraseology between the two texts. The problem with the second
position is that the Ecclesiastical History usually does little to disguise its
dependence on its sources and it does not seem to be quoting from other
texts in its ‘Life of Narsai’, the portion where it most often overlaps with the
Cause. 2 Moreover, the ‘Life of Narsai’ has certain similarities to the ‘Life
of Abraham of Bet Rabban’, 3 which follows it, suggesting that the ‘Life of
Narsai’ is not a wholly different source incorporated into the body of the
Ecclesiastical History. However, at this point it is not possible to determine
whether positions two or three are more likely: the texts are clearly related
to one another, but it is not certain whether this is through dependence on
a third text.

The Cause and the Ecclesiastical History overlap specifically in their
treatment of the lives and careers of Narsai and Abraham of Bet Rabban.
Despite these overlaps the two works differ in their style of presentation. In
fact, a look at their respective treatments of the life of Narsai may help to
characterize the general tendencies of each text. The Ecclesiastical History
presents Narsai as one in a long list of persecuted Christians who have

1 See comments at Baumstark, Geschichte, 136 n. 8.

2 Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de I’histoire ecclesiastique. Chapter 31, pp.

588-615.

3 Ibid., pp. 616-31.

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182 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

confessed their faith in the face of adversity since the time of the conversion
of Constantine. However, from the highly philosophical and even Evagrian
language in the ‘Life of Narsai’, it seems that the text understands its hero
as a kind of spiritual superman, whose natural philosophical aptitude, purity,
and wisdom gave him a head start on the path of learning from a preternatu-
rally young age. In contrast, the Narsai described in the Cause establishes
the formal scholastic hierarchy of offices, founds the School of Nisibis, and
serves as a key figure in the transmission of the School's learning, partic¬
ularly the school tradition and the exegesis of Theodore of Mopsuestia.
Despite these particulars he is presented in a more stereotyped form as one
of a number of heads of the School, and he stands out primarily only because
he is the first within an institutional succession.

Although the Cause and the Ecclesiastical History are different in genre
and intent, when placed side by side a number of verbal similarities are
apparent (I have included parallels below). 4 These two texts use similar
language when they describe the head of the School of the Persians prior to
Narsai. 5 However, the former attributes this position to Qyora and the latter
to Rabbula. The discrepancy between the names of the two heads is even
more striking when we consider the possibility that both names may derive
from the enemies of the adherents of traditional Antiochene theology, that
is, the two Miaphysite bishops of Edessa: Cyrus (Syr. Qura), who closed
the School of the Persians in 489, and the notorious Rabbula (d. 435/6 CE).
Despite these inconsistencies, the parallels in wording and content suggest
that these two passages are clearly related to one another. It is worth noting
that for the different school offices mentioned in this passage the Cause uses
abstract terms (e.g., maqrydnuta for the Ecclesiastical History’s qerydnd)
appropriate to the increase in certain morphologies in Syriac through the
sixth century, in part due to the influence of texts translated from Greek. 6

The texts also overlap closely in their description of Narsai’s ascent
to the position of leader at the School of the Persians. 7 After this point the

4 Employing a synoptic comparison, Hermann argues that the Cause uses the Ecclesiastical
History , however not ‘slavishly’ (Hermann, ‘Die Schule von Nisibis vom 5. bis 7. Jahrhundert’,
94).

5 Cause 382.3-7; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,
598.10-14.

6 Sebastian Brock has a number of articles on translation in antiquity, specifically Greek
to Syriac, e.g., ‘The Syriac Background to Hunayn’s Translation Techniques’, Aram 3 (1991):
139-62 (repr. in From Ephrem to Romanos , Chap. 14).

7 Cause 383.7-384.4; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique ,
598.14—599.12.

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APPENDIX III: LITERARY DEPENDANCE OF THE CAUSE 183

Ecclesiastical History provides an extended description of the events leading
to Narsai’s removal, or rather flight, from Edessa. This description includes
unflattering information about Narsai, which the Cause would perhaps have
left out even if its treatment were more extensive. 8 In contrast, the Cause
interjects here an addition to the original narrative, an update of sorts about
two other important figures of the day, Barsauma of Nisibis and Ma‘na of
Rewardashir. 9

The texts agree on specific details in their description of Narsai’s exodus
from Edessa and arrival at Nisibis. 10 However, in its description of events
the Cause characterizes the affair as a communal matter. It uses the word
‘assembly’ (Syr. knushya) for what was uprooted and brought from Edessa,
the same term used throughout the Cause’s history of the various institutions
of learning since creation. In contrast to the Cause’s depiction of the exodus
as an institutional phenomenon, in the earlier Ecclesiastical History it is a
personal affair. Despite this difference both texts recount the pronoucement
Barsauma, the bishop of Nisibis, made to Narsai on his arrival in Nisibis. 11
The Cause states that Narsai led the School for forty-five years; the Eccle¬
siastical History , for forty years.

In both texts the prosperity of the School of Nisibis is described. 12 Then
the career of the leader of the School subsequent to Narsai, Elisha bar
Qozbaye, is addressed. 13 According to the Cause, Elisha succeeded Narsai;
however, the Ecclesiastical History suggests that Abraham of Bet Rabban
led the assembly briefly but was deposed and replaced by Elisha, only to
lead the School again later. The texts have a number of verbal parallels in
their description of Abraham. 14

As stated above, there are two possible explanations for the numerous

8 For example, the fact that Narsai fled in secret, something for which the Ecclesiastical
History seems to feel obliged to apologize (Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire
ecclesiastique, 604.5-7).

9 Cause 384.1—2.

10 Cause 384.3-10; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,
605.5-606.11.

11 Cause 384.10-386.3; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,
606.11-608.7. There are specific verbal overlaps in these two speeches.

12 Cause 386.4; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique , 608.7-14.

13 Cause 387.4-387.7; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,

620.1- 5.

14 Cause 387.8-388.2; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,

616.1- 11; also Cause 389.1-11; Barhadbeshabba, La second partie de Vhistoire ecclesiastique,
630.7. Note the long stretch between the two passages in the Ecclesiastical History, as opposed
to their proximity in the Cause.

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184 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

instances of overlap both in content and in language between the Cause and
the Ecclesiastical History. First, the author of the Cause, whether he was
also the author of the Ecclesiastical History decades before or not, wrote
with the Ecclesiastical History open next to him. However, this does not
account for the discrepancies between the two texts. The second explanation
is that the two texts rely on the same source or sources. The library of the
School of Nisibis perhaps had numerous documents chronicling the history
of the School. The historical introductions to the statutes of the School may
serve as an example of this. 15 This source in fact even mentions an archive
at the School. 16 One could argue that the strong verbal overlaps between
the Cause and the Ecclesiastical History were due to the paraphrasing of
these different sources. This would also help to explain some of the more
unexpected discrepancies between the two texts, such as the Qyora/Rabbula
problem and the differences regarding length of tenure of office. However,
as stated above, one argument against this would be that the Ecclesiastical
History in other places often quotes openly from sources, leaving the seams
of these interpolations apparent. 17

15 E.g., Statutes of the School of Nisibis, 51-72.

16 Ibid. 54, Syriac bet arke (= Gr. ta archeia).

17 A full study needs to be done on the Ecclesiastical History and its sources. The only
close study of this text remains Abramowski’s Untersuchungen zum Liber Heraclides des
Nestorius, which examines its central chapters for information on Nestorius.

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SYNOPTIC COMPARISON OF THE CAUSE OF
THE FOUNDATION OF THE SCHOOLS
AND THE ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY

Verbal similarities are underlined and significant differences are marked in
boldface.

Qyora/Rabbula

Cause 382.3-7

The head and exegete of that school
(eskole) was an enlightened (saeei
nuhr a ) man whose (lit. his) name was
Qyora, who was completely a person
of God. To such an extent was this man
swallowed up by love for the business
(of the school), that he embraced
the complete practice of interpreta¬
tion ( mphashshqanuta ), of reading-
instruction ( maqryanuta ), and of
vocalization ( mhaggyanuta ), as well as
church homily. Although he was fasting
and abstinent, nevertheless he would
strenuously complete all this labour.

Ecclesiastical History 598.10-14
There was an exegete then at that time
in Edessa. They say about him that he
was an enlightened (saeei nuhra ) man .
His name was Rabbula. This man
was adorned with all things, with truth
learning and perfect virtue in manner of
life. He bore all the work of the school,
reading ( qeryand) as well as elementary
instmction ( hegyana ) and interpretation
( pushshaqa ). He also had confidence in
speech.

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186 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Narsai

Cause 383.7-384.4
After that man, the exegete of the
school, took his rest, then the whole
brotherhood asked Mar Narsai to
stand at the head of the assembly and
to fill its needs, because among all of
them there was no one there like him.
When Mar Narsai refused, he said to
them: ‘I myself am not able to bear the
whole labour the school, as our master
did. For he was rich in two things: in
bodily health and in spiritual grace with
old age. But if you make (someone
else 1 reader and elementary instructor
(maqrydnd wa-mhaggyana), perhaps
I will be able to interpret.’ After they
did everything that he asked, then that
blessed man led the assembly for a
period of twenty years , while daily
leading the choir and giving interpreta¬
tion.

Then Barsauma came to Nisibis and
was chosen to be bishop. Ma‘na went
to Persia and received there the yoke
of priesthood.

When the business of the assembly was
proceeding in order, then Satan troubled
and mixed them up, as is his habit.

Ecclesiastical History 598.14-599.12
After this holy man fulfilled his course,
according to the will of God, and rested
from his labour, there was an inquiry
concerning who would be suitable for
the work of teaching after him. All of
them equally shouted, "Mar Narsai the
presbyter is suitable, not only because
of his old age, his success, his work,
and the elegance of his speech, but
also because of his perfect and divine
manner of life and his condescension
towards everyone. After they compelled
him with many (entreaties), he received
only the work of teaching and made
for himself a aeader and an elementary
instructor (maqrydnd wa-mhaggyana)
so that it would be easier for him to
work at (interpreting) the meaning
of the divine scriptures. He led the
assembly for the long period of twenty
years , in all things beneficial, and in all
that time, there was no Satan nor evil
presence. But it is not our set purpose to
describe all his glories, lest our speech
burden the audience.

When Satan saw that his kingdom was
already despoiled, his side brought low,
and his force diminished, he then began
to stir up trouble and fear by means of
evil men. He found as the symposiarch
for his error the local bishop whose
name was Cyrus, a man heretical

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SYNOPTIC COMPARISON

187

Cause 384.4-10
When Mar Narsai
migrated from there,
he came to Nisibis
and settled in the
Monastery of the

Persians . For his
thought was to go
down to Persia .
Barsauma, after he
heard this, sent his
archdeacon and he
ordered that he enter
the city with great
honour. After he
entered and the two
of them greeted one
another and attended
to one another for a

few days, Barsauma
entreated him, if
he desired , to settle
there and make an
assembly of the
school in that city,
while he (Barsauma)
would help him with
all the necessities. As
it was difficult in the
eyes of Mar Narsai,
then Barsauma said
to him:

Both texts then turn

Ecclesiastical History 605.5-606.11
The holy one, after he arrived in Nisibis, did not enter the
city. For he thought that he would perhaps be hindered
from his intended goal, which was in truth what happened.
But he went to the Monastery of the Persians , which lay
to the east of the city. For his intention was to go down
to the east, that is, to the interior of Persia , in order that
he might provide instruction there and plant the seed of
the learning of the fear of God even if (only) in a few
who were there. When he was thinking to do this, three
clergymen happened on the monastery and saw that the
man was modest in his face and honourable and glorious
in his radiant appearance, and they asked about him, who
he was and what news he brought. Then after they learned
the object of their question, they eagerly went in and
informed Mar Barsauma about him. When he heard, he
earnestly sent to him some men from the clergy, (saying)
that if he ordered he could enter the city. After he was not
persuaded to enter with them and gave as an excuse for
this sometimes weariness, [606] at other times sickness,
sometimes that he was a stranger, at other times that
he was an unknown person, even sometimes that there
was no need for him to enter, then the bishop again sent
people, but this time his archdeacon 1 and ten of the clergy
as an honour to him. When they went out and entreated
him in many ways that he might see his friend, he thought
that perhaps it might be a mark of shame and contempt for
him to not enter. So he stood and entered with them.

After he entered the city. Mar Barsauma went out to meet
him with much pomp and with comely honour he led him
into the church. Then they conversed with one another for
a little while. After he learned the cause of his migration
from there, he requested that, if he desired , he should
leave off his prior design and that which he intended to do
far off would be accomplished there in proximity and by
the interaction of the two of them planting the assembly
of Mesopotamia, so as to offer a great benefit to both
sides, to the Romans and the Persians at once. Then as if
to someone who was resisting, the bishop said to that holy
one:

to Barsauma’s speech to Narsai on his arrival in Nisibis.

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188 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

Cause 384.10-386.3
‘ Do not think that your removal
from Edessa and the scattering of
the assembly were accidental, oh my
brother, but rather that it was the provi¬
dence of God. If it is (the case) that you
should liken this to that which occurred
in Jerusalem after the ascension of our
Lord, you would not be mistaken. For
also the band of Apostles was there
and the gift of the spirit and the signs
which were done and the different
powers. Because they were not worthy ,
their house was forsaken desolate,
according to the saviour’s word. The
Apostles then went out to the ways of
the Gentiles and to the narrow paths
of paganism, and gathered everyone
whom they found, good and evil. They
made students, baptized and taught, and
in a short time the gospel of our Lord
flew through all the world. It seems to
me that the scattering of this (i.e. your)
assembly is similar. If you listen to me
and settle here, everywhere there will
be a great benefit from you. For there
is no city in the Persian realm which is
able to receive you like this one. It is
a great city, set in the borderlands, and
from all regions they (i.e. people) are
gathered unto it. When they hear that
there is an assembly here, especially
that you yourself are its leader, many
will throng here, especially because
now heresy has begun openly to gaze
out from its surroundings in Mesopo¬
tamia. You will be as a shield to us and
a strenuous labourer. Perhaps between
you and me we will be able to expel
evil from our midst. For it is said: Two
good men are

Ecclesiastical History 606.11-608.7
‘ Do not think that this deed is human,
master. For although they planned evil
against you and completed their satanic
plan, nevertheless that hidden provi¬
dence . which sees everything, did not
turn away from you. But it did what
was expedient for the purpose of provi¬
dence, just as in the time of Joseph and
in the time [607] of the Apostles. Just
as at one time the assembly migrated
from Antioch to Daphne and from there
to Edessa, so also now I think that
it has migrated from Edessa to here
because the ones who were reading
were not worthy. For, behold, also the
Apostles endeavoured much to plant
the gospel in Judea. Because that rabid
nation was not worthy of this lasting
good, when they thought to harm them
by expelling them from their midst, it
rather turned out to be a benefit for the
Apostles since they were not chastised
along with them in Titus’s punishment.
But by this cause they went over to the
gentiles. Then they went out to the wavs
and the narrow paths. They compelled
the gentiles to enter the messianic
banquet. Thus now also it seems to me
that this has happened. Because the
Romans were not worthy of receiving
the truth nor of enjoying the shining
rays of the light of true faith, and are
going to earn punishment for their sins;
on account of this they incited a war
against you, that you yourself would be
saved like Lot from punishment, while
they will be destroyed like the harmful
Sodomites. But you also, like the
Apostles, busy yourself and plant here
the word of

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SYNOPTIC COMPARISON

189

better than one, in that there is a better
reward in their labour. If one becomes
strong, two of them will stand against
him.’

Orthodoxy. For if you do this, the two
sides will easily benefit, since it is close
enough for your students to come here
[608] to you. Furthermore, Persians
frequent here because of the climate
of the place, and because the place is
bountiful in all kinds of products it is
easy for the brothers to live and succeed
in learning scripture, especially since
I myself will be a helper to you in this
business. For although it happens that
brave fighters are vanquished and flee
from their enemies, yet whenever they
do not depart to far away but reside at
the side of a nearby place, this is a sign
of their victory and the health of their
soul. In this way also if you reside here
in the neighbourhood of Edessa, it will
be a sign of your victory and a disgrace
unto your enemies.’

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190 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

The Cause states that Narsai led the School for forty-five years; the Ecclesi¬
astical History, forty years. The prosperity of the School of Nisibis is then
described:

Cause 386.4—11 Ecclesiastical History 608.7-14

After he (i.e. Barsauma) put his (i.e. After the holy one heard these words.

Narsai's) mind to rest with (words) such
as these, then he (i.e. Narsai) consented
to do this. At once he commanded and
did all the things that were necessary
and useful for the school. In a short
time they increased to such an extent
- not only Persian and Syrian brothers
who were near by, but also a majority
of that assembly of Edessa came to
it - so that as a result glory ascended to
God. From this cause also assemblies
increased in the Persian realm. Edessa
grew dark and Nisibis grew light; the
Roman realm was filled with error, and
the Persian realm with knowledge of
the fear of God. He led this assembly
forty-five years. He also composed up
to three hundred homilies, and more
including his other writings.

Both texts then describe the careers of

Elisha bar Qozbaya

Cause 387.4—7

Mar Elisha from the village of Qozb,
a great man , trained in all the subjects
of the ecclesiastical and profane books,
received the work of interpretation. (It
was) for seven years. He also composed
many writings : a refutation of the
charges of Magianism, a disputation
against heretics, commentaries on
all the books of the Old (Testament)
according to the Syriac tongue.

his thought was inclined a little and he
promised him that if it was possible he
would do this. That Barsauma, as soon
as he heard this, rejoiced greatly. Then
he bought for the school a caravansary
on the side of the church. Because
there was a school there before, and
an exegete from Kashkar whose name
was Simeon, a great and excellent man,
there was no hindrance in this matter,
but the prior students busied themselves
with learning. In a short time brothers
began to gather from all regions
because of this holy one.

the subsequent leaders of the School.

Ecclesiastical History 620.1-5
After this blessed one died, the glorious
one succeeded him and led this assem¬
bly for twenty years. Then the brothers
as well as the citizens caused him
trouble and made in his place as teacher
Elisha of Bet Arbaye, from the village
of Qozb, a great as well as learned man .
He led the assembly for four years and
he also composed many didactic and
exegetical writings . He resolved the
charges put forward by the Magi, that
is, those who are against us.

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SYNOPTIC COMPARISON

191

According to the Cause, Elisha succeeded Narsai; however, the Ecclesi¬
astical History suggests that Abraham led the assembly briefly but was
deposed and replaced by Elisha only to lead the School again later.

Abraham of Bet Rabban

Cause 387.8-388.2
After this blessed man was gathered
unto his fathers in peace and in deep
old age, then Mar Abraham received his
labour - servant, Mn and [74] cellmate
(bar qelayta) of Mar Narsai. This man,
so they say, they would formerly call
Narsai, and after his father brought him
to this blessed man, he changed his
name and called him Abraham.

Ecclesiastical History 616.1-11
For he was a kinsman of of Mar Narsai
and of the same stock as well as from
the same village (bar qriteh). The name
of his father was Bar Sahde. After he
reached fifteen years of age, he was
moved by divine instigation to let go
of and abandon all the desirable things
of this world and to concern himself
with spiritual labour. When he heard
about Mar Narsai, where he was and
what his work was, he asked his father
that they (i.e. his family) might conduct
him to him. Then after his father was
persuaded and brought him to Nisibis
and Mar Narsai was informed about
him, that he was his kinsman, he
asked what his name was. His father
said, ‘Narsai, like your own name’.
Immediately he changed his name and
called him Abraham and said, ‘There
should not be two Narsais in one cell’.
[Abraham metaphor continued]

History between the above

There is a long stretch in the Ecclesiastical
passage and the following one.

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BRIEF GLOSSARY OF SELECTED TERMS

Antiochene Theology A form of Christology (i.e. the theological under¬
standing of the person(s) of Christ) associated with the city of Antioch
which emphasized within the incarnation the persistence of the human
nature of Christ as distinct from the divine. Its more famous and
influential proponents are Diodore of Tarsus, Theodore of Mopsuestia,
Nestorius, and Theodoret of Cyrrhus. The enemies of these Dyophysites
condemned them as ‘Nestorians’. It is often set against Alexandrian
theology or Christology, which focuses more on the unity of the divine
and the human in Christ (Miaphysitism).

Dyophysites Those who emphasized the dual nature of the incarnation. They
have been unfairly called ‘Nestorians’, after Nestorius and his followers,
who refused to employ the term ‘Theotokos’ for the Virgin Mary and
rejected the views of Cyril of Alexandria.

East-Syrian This is a less offensive term than ‘Nestorian’ for the ‘Church
of the East’, that is, the Dyophysite church in the Sasanian Empire,
especially after it developed its own distinct ecclesiastical hierarchy in
the fifth and sixth centuries.

Elementary instructor ( mhaggyana ) This was the office of elementary
instruction. It entailed the teaching of the alphabet and, as the name
suggests, how to vocalize a text.

Exegete ( mphashshqana ) There was only one holder of this office, which
we could also render as ‘the interpreter’. Apart from offering ‘interpreta¬
tion’ (pushshaqa ), he was also the nominal head of the School.

Instructor ( badoqa ) It is not clear whether those with this title had a special
place within the School. Etymologically the title suggests that this is
someone who looked deeply into things, perhaps the meaning of scrip¬
ture, but also possibly into the nature of things.

Miaphysites This is used instead of the more commonly recognized
‘Monophysite’. To call certain Christians ‘monophysite’ is to suggest
that they acknowledge only one nature in the incarnation, while
‘miaphysite’ places an emphasis on the incarnate word’s unity of nature,

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BRIEF GLOSSARY OF SELECTED TERMS

193

which derives originally from two distinct natures.

Reader ( maqryana ) This instructor offered more advanced lessons than the
elementary instructor. As the name suggests, he would teach the students
to read, perhaps by reading aloud first with the students repeating after
him. He may have offered some interpretation of the text as well. It is
not clear where the boundaries were between his position and the former
elementary instructor and the latter exegete.

School ( eskole ) This term, obviously deriving from the Greek schole and
cognate with our word ‘school’, was applied to a diversity of centres of
learning, from informal gatherings at village churches to distinct institi-
tutions such as the School of Nisibis.

Steward ( rabbayta ) This title, meaning literally ‘the chief or headman of
the house’, was given to the office of the one who was responsible for
the mundane, day-to-day workings of the School, including economic
matters.

Syriac The Aramaic dialect of Edessa, which became the dominant literary
dialect among Christians in Mesopotamia and parts of Syria.

Teacher ( mallphand ) This generic term seems to have also been applied
to certain figures at the School, but it is not clear how it fits within the
institutional organization.

Tradition ( mashlmanuta ; transmit: ashlein; mashlem ) The School of
Nisibis seems to have had an oral ‘tradition’ deriving from the School
of the Persians in Edessa. ‘Tradition’ and the verb from which it derives
(‘transmit’) are employed in the sources to describe the process of trans¬
mission of this exegetical tradition. The word mashlmanuta can also
have a more concrete meaning, when it is used to refer to a collection of
‘traditions’. In such cases it can mean ‘commentary’.

West-Syrian This refers to Syriac Christian Miaphysites, although this term
becomes problematic when used for the period before such identities
had fully developed.

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Map 1 Sasanian Mesopotamia and the north-western Roman frontier

LUP Becker 06 GlossBiblio.indd 194

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LUP Becker 06 GlossBiblio.indd 195

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Map 2 The Late Antique Near East

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Thomas of Marga, Book of Governors: The Historia Monastica of Thomas
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A. C. Klugkist (OLA 89; Louvain: Peeters, 1999), 1-10.

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Barsoum, Ignatius Aphram, History of Syriac Literature and Sciences, trans.
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200 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

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Early Seventh Centuries: Preliminary Considerations and Materials’, in
Aksum-Thyateira: a Festschrift for Archbishop Methodios, ed. G. Dagras
(London: Thyateira House, 1985; repr. in Brock, Studies in Syriac Chris¬
tianity), 125-42.

-‘Syriac Historical Writing: A Survey of the Main Sources’, Journal of

the Iraqi Academy Syriac Corporation 5 (Baghdad, 1979-80) (repr in
Brock, Studies in Syriac Christianity, Chap. 1), 1-30

Brockelmann, Karl, Lexicon Syriacum (Hildesheim: Georg Olms, 1995).

Chabot, J.-B., ‘L’ecole de Nisibe, son histoire, ses statuts’, JA, series 9 vol.
8 (1896): 43-93

de Halleux, Andre, ‘La dixieme lettre de Philoxene aux monasteres du Beit
Gaugal’, LM 96 (1983): 5-79.

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Doran, Robert, Stewards of the Poor: The Man of God, Rabbula, and Hiba
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Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner, 1962).

Drijvers, Hans J. W., ‘The School of Edessa: Greek learning and local
culture’, in Centres of Learning: Learning and Location in Pre-modern
Europe and the Near East, ed. Jan Willem Drijvers and Alasdair
MacDonald, Brill’s Studies in Intellectual History, vol. 61 (Leiden: Brill,
1995), 49-59.

Fiey, J.-M., Communautes syriaques en Iran et Irak des origines a 1552
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Garsoian, Nina, L’Eglise Armenienne et le Grand Schisme d’Orient (CSCO
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Gero, Stephen, Barsauma of Nisibis and Persian Christianity in the Fifth
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Glenthpj, Johannes Bartholdy, Cain and Abel in Syriac and Greek Writers
(4 ,l '-6‘ h Centuries) (Louvain: Peeters, 1997).

Grillmeier, Aloys and Theresia Hainthaler, Jesus der Christus im Glaube der
Kirche 2/3 (Freiburg: Herder, 2004).

Harvey, Susan Ashbrook, Asceticism and Society in Crisis: John of Ephesus
and ‘The Lives of the Eastern Saints ’ (Berkeley: University of California
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Hoyland, Robert, Seeing Islam As Others Saw It: A sun’ey and evaluation
of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian writings on early Islam (Studies in
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Hugonnard-Roche, Henri, La logique d'Aristote du grec au syriaque. Etudes
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Labourt, Jerome, Le Christianisme dans VEmpire Perse, sous la Dynastie
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OCP 39 (1973): 275-306.

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scuole : traduzione e note essenziali’, Tin. Revista de Ciencias de las
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acquired since the year 1838 (London, 1870-72; repr. Piscataway, NJ:
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repr. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2001).

LUP_Becker_06_GlossBiblio.indd 202

10/10/08 09:57:05

INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES

Genesis

Leviticus

5:20 131

1 117

18:5 128

6:1-3 131

1:1 103, 105

20:11 116

1:3 nl87 117,nl88 118

Numbers

1:26 115

35.13-14 62

Ezra

2:17 123

7:6 142

2-3 123

Joshua

3:4-5 124

10:12 116

Job

3:18-19 117

38:7 118

4:5 66

Judges

4:12 125

15:20 72

Psalms

4:15 125

21:25 129

1 123

6:3 85

1:2 49

6:9 125

1 Samuel

1:3 76

8:21-22 125

19:8-17 62

17:27 69

12:1 126

18:16 69

17:4 73

2 Samuel

19:10 53

18:16-19:29 64

15:13-31 62

19:11 53

18:19 126

27:12 81

22:17 126

1 Kings

33:5 95

22:18 25

3:12 130

37:28 81

28:12 120

4:31 130, 147

45:2 142

32:8 122

4:33 130

82:6 115

4:34 130

89:3 95

Exodus

5:4 58

89:8 96

20:19 126

18:43 131

103:20 114

31:18 nl87 118

19:1-18 53

111:10 52

32:17-18 127

19:3 131

119:23 59

32:26 127

21 61, 66

119:64 95

32:27-29 128

119:97 50

32:29 128

2 Kings

119:103 53

34:29-35 128

4:12 131

4:25 131

Proverbs

4:38 131

1:7 132

LUP_Becker_07_lndices.indd 203

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204 SOURCES FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL OF NISIBIS

4:10 130

Micah

6:39 108

14:15 49

7:2 59, 136

11:1525

25:3 131

12:31 158

Matthew

14:23 64, 151

Ecclesiastes

5:2-3 139

15:8-10 108

2:12 130

5:16 160

16:16 137

3:3 130

5:17 138, 139

22:7-23 140

4:4 67

6:11 157

22:12 140

4:9 152

6:23 108

22:20 140

4:17 130

10:28 54

7:23 130

10:32 60

John

7:23-24 104

11:8 77

1:4 108

11:1049

11:11 137

1:29 137

12:1 49

11:13 137

1:51 114

12:13-14 131

11:27 103, 105

3:30 137

11:29 137

8:44 125

Sirach

12:24 25

10:33 25

16:3 60

13:2-3 139

11:48 139

13:52 156

12:19 139

Isaiah

21:22 72

12:35 109

26:20 62

22:10 152

12:43 143

38:8-9 116

22:11 159

16:12-13 140

22:12-13 159

17:6 105

Jeremiah

23:38 151

18:1 140

5:3 59, 136

25:31 79

18:13-14 25

7:28 59

25:36 79

18:23-24 25

10:12 96

26:20-30 140

36:19-26 62

26:28 140

Acts of the Apostles

48:13 136

28:19-20 140

141

4:6 25

Ezekiel

Mark

8:9 26

1:1-28 158

3:22 25

9:15 96

20:25 128

7:25 71

11:26 141

14:12-25 140

15 141

Daniel

14:15 140

17:27 114

1:10 53

14:24 140

18:11 141

2:21 96

14:49 139

19:7-8 141

7:10 121

16:20 140

19:9-10 142

9:21 114

28:31 141

11:34 96

Luke

3:2 25

Romans

Jonah

3:23 139

1:19 105

4:6-11 124

6:17 139

1:21 133

LUP_Becker_07_lndices.indd 204

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INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES

205

1:22 132, 136

Galatians

1 Timothy

1:25 132

1:10 60

6:7 157

7:15 51

2:1-14 141

11:33 94, 96

2:10 26

2 Timothy

12:19 60, 62

3:6-9 25

4:8 72

16:27 96

6:2 60

4:16 82

1 Corinthians

Ephesians

Titus

2:10 105

1:21 121, 122

2:7 55

2:11 103

2:2 45, 116, 121

2:7-8 59

2:14-15 179

3:8 94

9:22 60

4:22-24 75, 160

Philemon

9:26 158

8 141

9:27 75

Philippians

1:20 141

Hebrews

2 Corinthians

3:12 141

3:20 158

1:14 120

7:4 141

Colossians

James

11:29 78, 82, 141

1:16 121, 122

3:9-10 75, 160, 75, 160
4:5-6 159

1:12 72

LUP_Becker_07_lndices.indd 205

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INDEX OF PROPER NAMES

Aaron 129

Aba 161, 162, 171

‘Abdisho 1 bar Berika of Nisibis 12,

16 40

Abel 88, 124-5

Abraham 25, 73, 85, 88, 126, 154-5
Abraham bar Qardahe 164
Abraham of Bet Rabban 7, 8, 11, 15,
43, 153-5, 163-4
life of 18, 46, 47, 73-85, 181, 183,
191

accused by enemy brothers 80-1
asceticism 76-7
death 85

defence of the Doctors of the
Church 82^4

early life and training under Narsai
73-4, 75
Jews attack 81-2
on learning and the body 74-6
work at the school 77-80
Abraham of Media 33, 35
Abraham of Nisibis 155
Abshalom 62
‘Abshota of Nineveh 32
Acacius of Bet Aramaye 32, n61 32,
35, 38
Achaea 141
Adam 88, 89, 125
Addai 34

Addai the Apostle 149-50
Aetius 42
Ahriman 136
Aksenaya 34, 148

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